Suspension of Disbelief
by sweeet-as-honey
Summary: The ED is in turmoil after Charlie is discovered to be in possession of the stolen medication, but Cal's mind is on Ethan, who was dragged into a cupboard and pawed by a female patient. Set during and after The Best Day of My Life (5/5/16).
1. Chapter 1

_I know... I have lots of other stories that need updating. But I really liked Cal and Ethan's little story in the last episode and I wanted to write something. Originally, this story was going to be much more about Cal's relationship with Charlie, but I got distracted. I hope it's not to confusing or unbelievable. It's possible not everything will fit with what happened in the episode._

* * *

Cal still couldn't believe Ethan had done it.

He'd messed it up, of course. It went without saying that he'd messed it up and Cal had never really considered any other outcome, but he hadn't expected Ethan to get as far as the admin cupboard.

He smiled to himself as he wondered what would have happened if the girl hadn't fainted. His only slight regret was that he hadn't thought of asking Ethan what he'd shown her that had shocked her enough to make her faint.

Ethan in the admin cupboard with a girl… Cal couldn't wait to tell everyone about that in the pub later.

Actually, why wait? Iain and Jez were just leaving the hospital and Cal was probably due a break, especially after all the stress of sorting out his little brother's mess. He hurried out after them and told them everything. As he'd expected, Iain and Jez found it hilarious and while Cal did have a moment's panic when he left them and nearly walked into Connie, who was standing worryingly near, she didn't seem to notice him.

When Cal went inside and found Max and Jacob in the staff room. He couldn't resist the opportunity to tell the story all over again. Max and Jacob had both been a bit miserable lately after being dumped by Zoe and Connie (Cal still had trouble believing they'd pulled such high-power, high-ranking, high-heeled women, especially as he himself had tried and failed), but Cal's story about Ethan soon cheered them up.

"I'm going to call Lofty and tell him!" said Max delightedly.

"But maybe we shouldn't tell Robyn," said Jacob.

Max looked as though he could see his point, but then he shook his head. "No, we've got to tell Robyn. We can't leave her out. She won't tell anyone who matters."

Much as Cal would have liked to hear Lofty's reaction and see Robyn's, he knew he really needed to get back to work. He had his own patients to cover and Ethan was severely limited without his glasses. Cal threw himself into work, alternating between his patients and his brother's.

Although the incident had nearly had a very worrying end, Cal couldn't help but smile as he thought of it. It had often depressed him that he'd got into so many messes and needed his baby brother to rescue him and it made him feel better to think that not only was he capable of helping Ethan out, Ethan had actually _chosen_ to call him for help. It wasn't as though Cal was the only option – he could have asked Max, who was always willing to help anybody and seldom seemed to have any work to do.

Cal wasn't sure exactly when the atmosphere in the ED changed. More than once, as he moved from one cubicle to another, he had the sense that something was going on, but it wasn't until Elle marched out of Connie's office, slamming the door behind her, that Cal was certain.

He found out more later on when he arrived at the staff room to discover Rita and Jacob talking. It only took a second for Cal to realise the conversation was private and he should make himself scarce.

But after hearing Rita's first words, a feeling of foreboding rose in his mind and nothing could have made him walk away.

"I just… can't believe it. I never would have thought it of him," Rita was saying.

"Me neither," said Jacob unhappily.

Rita shook her head. "I just keep thinking to myself that there must be some mistake. But I can't think of any other explanation."

"I'd like there to be another explanation," said Jacob. "But I don't see how they could have got in there without his agreement."

"He's just a lovely, lovely man," said Rita. "I know that. Connie knows that. _Everyone_ knows that."

"He doesn't deserve this," said Jacob.

Rita's voice rose. "But what else could we do, Jacob? He broke a fundamental rule. If the patient had kept quiet, then maybe it wouldn't have mattered. But she hasn't kept quiet and I can't say I blame her. I mean, who wouldn't be upset? She's the victim here, Jacob."

"But in the meantime, we lose a very valuable member of our team, perhaps forever," said Jacob.

Rita sighed. "Of course it's forever. How can they let him come back after something like this?"

Cal found he was backing away from the staff room. He didn't want to hear anymore. He couldn't.

He didn't need to.

 _It's all my fault_ , thought Cal as he dashed away, looking desperately around for a sight of his brother. _I'm the one who insisted he ask her out, even though it is against the rules. I'm the one who went round telling anyone and not bothering to keep my voice down. I'm the reason all this has happened._

He nearly cannoned into Lily who told him rather acidly to watch where he was going. Cal caught her by the shoulders. "Lily, where's Ethan?"

"Mrs Beauchamp sent him home," said Lily shortly. "Please remove your hands. I have work to do."

She walked away, leaving Cal reeling.

It was true then. Someone had heard about Ethan and the patient and had reported it to Connie, who'd suspended him.

Cal didn't really blame Connie. Not completely. Ethan had broken the rules and she'd administered the appropriate punishment. Cal was sure he'd have been punished in exactly the same way if any of his misdeeds had ever been found out.

But this wasn't a simple case of a doctor breaking the rules. This was a doctor under severe stress who'd been given the news that his life would change beyond recognition; that he would slowly deteriorate, physically and mentally, and be unable to do the job he loved. This was a doctor who wasn't sure how much time he had left, so he wanted to seize every opportunity, even if it did mean bending the rules slightly.

This was a very vulnerable doctor who'd been very much teased and provoked by his older brother and had probably broken the rules partly in order to stop Cal from doing the same.

"Cal, are you all right?"

Cal looked up to see Rita looking at him. "How do you expect me to be all right?"

Rita came up to him and put a hand on his arm. "Listen, I know it's a shock. It's been a shock for all of us and obviously, you are especially close to him. But we can't be sure what's going to happen. I know it's difficult, but we've just got to try to keep positive and hope for a reprieve. This hospital wouldn't be the same without him and I think there's only one person in the whole ED who doesn't see that."

"Who's that?" said Cal, his heart thumping. Who was it who'd messed up his brother's whole life when it was hanging by a thread already?

Rita pursed her lips. "Elle."

"Elle?" It was true Cal didn't know Elle very well, but he'd never have thought her capable of this. He doubted any of the lads would have told her and even Robyn was a bit careful about gossiping to the consultants (Zoe wouldn't have minded, but most consultants kept a certain amount of distance and were aware of their additional responsibilities). So Elle must have been listening. Eavesdropping. She must have found out what Ethan had done and then run straight to Connie. "But how could she do that to him?"

"That's what we're all wondering," said Rita grimly.

"What did he ever do to her?" Cal was close to tears now.

"What has he ever done to anyone except try to help them?" said Rita.

Cal tried to bring his breathing under control. "Okay, so he broke a rule. He broke a pretty major rule and maybe he deserves some sort of punishment, but to go running to Connie…"

A look of pain came to Rita's face. She looked like she might cry too. "I've got to go," she mumbled, and brushed past him, running off down the corridor. Cal watched her go, surprised she was so upset, but he knew Rita had been through a lot lately. She'd had all that trouble with her ex-husband and now Iain was being blatantly unfaithful. She might not be that close to Ethan, but it had been a very tough time for her.

Cal stayed where he was for a moment, wondering what he should do. A big part of him wanted to go home to Ethan and comfort him and reassure him that they would fight this all the way. He probably needed Cal even more than he had earlier in that cupboard.

But one thing Ethan had always said about Cal was that he never took responsibility for anything – and the fact was, he was responsible for what was happening to Ethan now. So he would go to see Connie right now and he would take responsibility.

Cal felt a little better for having made the decision, but his heart nearly failed him as he raised a hand to knock on Connie's door. His instincts were (as usual) screaming at him to run: nobody had connected him with the incident so far and he was fairly sure Ethan wouldn't say anything.

But then he felt ashamed. Ethan's loyalty to him was one of the biggest reasons why Cal needed to do this.

He knocked on Connie's door and she told him to come in.

Connie didn't look happy to see him. "Can it wait, Dr Knight?"

"No," said Cal. "I have to say this." He walked up to the desk and looked beseechingly at his boss. "Please, Mrs Beauchamp. Please don't fire him."

Connie shrugged sadly. "It's out of my control, Dr Knight. He broke the rule and he did it willingly."

"But he didn't!" said Cal. "It's my fault, Mrs Beauchamp. It's completely my fault. The only reason they were in there was because of me."

A light came into Connie's eye. It was a light almost of hope, which surprised Cal, but it quickly faded and was replaced by shards of ice. "I think you'd better explain exactly what you mean by that, Dr Knight."


	2. Chapter 2

**X-Sammii-X** , thank you for your review. There is definitely a big chance that he'll get Ethan into trouble - and possibly himself too!

 **Chels** , thank you for your review - I really am so happy you like the idea. I hope you'll keep reading.

 **EDSidekick** , I love it when people start screaming at my characters! I'm glad it seems believable that Cal could make such a big mistake. I could really imagine him running off to tell all his mates what Ethan had done! Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , I'm glad you like the misunderstanding. I think there is a good chance Cal is about to dig a hole - for Ethan, if not for himself! Thank you for your review.

 **CBloom2** , Cal is going to feel very awkward! And guilty. And stupid. I doubt Ethan will be feeling completely happy either. Thank you for your review.

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. Cal is definitely about to tell Connie something Ethan doesn't want her to know about!

 **Guest** , thank you for your review. I'm assuming your 'well done' to Cal is sarcastic! He really has messed up this time. Again.

 _Thank you to X-Sammii-X, EDSidekick, Gingersnaps2507, Future light, s1436229 for the follows and favourites._

* * *

All Cal wanted to do was to run, but he sat down in the chair opposite Connie.

She raised en eyebrow. "I don't remember inviting you to sit, Dr Knight."

Cal stood up again. His knees were trembling and he would have been much happier sitting down, but he didn't really deserve to be comfortable after everything he'd done. "There was this patient."

"I think I know the patient you mean," said Connie, "but it would help if you were just a little more specific."

"She works in some delicatessen," said Cal. "Ethan's really got the hots for her, so I encouraged him to make a move. He didn't want to at first because obviously, it's against the rules to ask out the patients."

He risked a glance at Connie. She was looking slightly confused. "Go on, Dr Knight."

"But I was teasing him like I always do," said Cal. "I said if he didn't take a chance and ask her out, I would. Ethan agreed, but he wouldn't do anything until he was about to discharge her. Technically, she was no longer his patient when it happened, though the discharge obviously wasn't quite complete because she hadn't left yet."

"So, she was still under the ED roof and Dr Hardy was still working," said Connie.

"Um… yes," Cal said awkwardly. "So he asked her out and made a complete mess of it and she seemed totally uninterested, but then she suddenly grabbed his hand and dragged him off and the next thing Ethan knew, they were in the admin cupboard and she was trying to tear his clothes off."

Connie's voice dripped with sarcasm. "And of course, Dr Hardy is no match for the strength of an unwell female patient."

"You'd be surprised how forceful these unwell female patients can be," said Cal. "They've got me into a few situations too."

"I don't doubt it," said Connie drily.

"But Ethan is much smaller than me and he's far too much of a gentleman to push her away," said Cal. "He wouldn't want to risk hurting her. But he did say no several times. He begged her to stop. If it had been the other way round and she was begging him to stop and he hadn't, that would have been sexual assault. So I really don't see how it's any different when it's a woman trying to molest Ethan."

Connie was frowning. "So, were you a witness to all this? Did you stand there watching while this voracious female attempted to steal your brother's innocence?"

"No, I wasn't quite there the _whole_ time," admitted Cal. "Ethan phoned me."

"Why?" said Connie. "Is it customary for Dr Hardy to give updates on the progress of his seductions?"

"It's not really customary for Ethan to seduce anybody," said Cal. "And I've already told you she was the seducer. Ethan phoned me because something had come up and he wasn't sure what to do."

Connie's hand passed over her mouth. If Cal hadn't known better, he'd have thought she was hiding a smile.

His blood boiled. Just because he laughed at Ethan, it didn't mean everyone else could.

"I suppose it's only natural, in that situation, for Dr Hardy to phone a man of experience," said Connie.

"Yes, completely natural," said Cal, a bit warily. He had a feeling he'd walked into some trap or other, but he had no idea what it was. "She'd fainted, you see."

Connie looked almost intrigued. "I wonder what Dr Hardy did to give her such a shock."

"He did nothing apart from try to fight her off without hurting her," said Cal. "Because he's a gentleman. And I'm sure that's the only reason why he hasn't told you the full story: because he doesn't want to make her look bad. It's lucky I'm here to help out. As it happens, the woman is married and the reason why she wanted to sleep with Ethan was because she wanted to get pregnant and have a blond-haired, brown-eyed kid."

Connie's eyebrows lifted. "She admitted all this, did she?"

"Yes, she did," said Cal. "Ethan took it very well, but I'm sure he was upset and disappointed."

"Yes, I imagine he would be," said Connie.

Cal bent down so his eyes were level with Connie's. "Please, Mrs Beauchamp. Ethan didn't mean to do anything wrong. He's been through a really tough time – tougher than you know – and he really wants to make the most of his life. But he's so vulnerable, it's very easy for stupid idiots like me to push him into situations he doesn't really want to be in. Please reconsider your decision to suspend him. I haven't spoken to Ethan, but I bet you anything you like he's sitting at home, feeling devastated."

"Suspension is the usual punishment in this sort of situation," said Connie.

"I know," said Cal. "But sometimes it's not just the outward situation you need to look at. It's the inward situation too. It can look like one thing is going on but actually it's something else."

There was a hint of an emotion in Connie's eyes. Cal thought it might have been regret, but it was only there for a moment.

"Sometimes, when you know something, you have no choice but to act, even if it's the very last thing you want to do," said Connie. "Leave this with me, Dr Knight. I can't make any promises. Sometimes the rules can be bent and sometimes it's pretty cut-and-dried. I'll be honest: this is the last thing I needed to happen right now. But it has happened and I'll have to deal with it."

Cal was surprised by the heaviness in her voice. He wasn't aware of any other incidents. "Of course you do, Mrs Beauchamp, but dealing with someone doesn't always mean following the rules."

"In your book, Dr Knight, I'm sure it doesn't," said Connie. "Thank you. You may go."

* * *

Cal knew he shouldn't leave before the end of his shift. They were already one doctor down, but he hated the thought of Ethan being alone.

He hurried off to get changed and was on his way out when he saw Elle. "Have you any idea what you've done?" he demanded.

"I know exactly what I've done," said Elle, an edge in her voice.

"And you don't feel any regrets at all?" said Cal.

"I regret that I had to do it," said Elle, "but the rules are clear, Cal. If someone is found to be breaking the rules, particularly such a serious one as this…"

Cal took a shaky breath. "You have no idea what he's going through."

"No, I don't," admitted Elle. "But I don't think that should make a difference. There are some situations where you should take extenuating circumstances into account, but there comes a point when you have to say 'these are the rules; they must be implemented; if not, steps must be taken.' I know my decision isn't popular. That's been made very clear to me. But to me, it doesn't matter how long someone's been here or how good they are at their job. If Mrs Beauchamp slapped you, would you let her get away with it on the grounds that there isn't a better clinical lead in the business?"

"No, but this is different," argued Cal.

Elle shook her head. "It's a rule, Cal. It's the ED as a whole we have to be considering, not individuals. If you don't agree with that…" She sighed and started to walk away. "Well, you're not in the minority."

* * *

Cal wasn't sure what sort of state he was expecting Ethan to be in, but he didn't expect him to be calmly making dinner in his prescription sunglasses. Cal went over to him and put his arm around him. "You okay?"

It was difficult to gauge Ethan's expression. "Why wouldn't I be okay?"

"Rita told me you'd been sent home," said Cal. He rubbed Ethan's back. "I'm really sorry."

"Apology accepted," said Ethan, and turned back to his cooking.

Cal stared at him for a moment, wondering what he had to apologise for, and decided he probably should apologise for forcing Ethan into that situation. But as Ethan already thought he'd done it, he wouldn't confuse the issue by apparently doing again. He patted Ethan on the back a couple of times, then he reached for Ethan's sunglasses and took them off.

"What are you doing?" said Ethan, trying to grab them back.

Cal held them out of reach and had a good look at Ethan's eyes. They didn't look red or swollen. Cal was glad. He didn't like the thought of Ethan crying on his own without his big brother to comfort him.

"Cal? Can I have my glasses back?" said Ethan.

"Say pl-"Cal stopped. Asking Ethan to say 'please' had seemed funny when he was in the admin cupboard, but not so much now when it was likely to remind Ethan of what had happened. "Of course you can, Nibbles."

Ethan gave him a suspicious look and put his glasses on. He looked down at the saucepan and continued stirring the ingredients with… with a wooden thingy. Cal looked into the pan and saw a few green things, something long and stringy and some cubes of some sort of meat.

"It looks good," said Cal. It actually looked quite unappetising, but Ethan's food usually tasted good.

"It's a stir-fry," said Ethan.

Cal nodded. "I noticed you were stirring. Though I have to say they don't look much like fries."

Ethan sighed. "It's called a stir-fry because I'm stirring the food whilst frying it."

"Oh, right," said Cal. "It looks good."

Ethan carried on stirring. His hand looked steady (Cal couldn't have put into words how much he was dreading the day when Ethan's hands were no longer steady) and there were no outward signs that he was unhappy, but Cal didn't see how he could be anything else after what had happened today.

"Ethan, I know you must be upset," said Cal.

Ethan stirred faster. "I'm not upset."

Cal decided not to argue. "I want you to know, Ethan. I'm going to fix this. I'm going to do whatever it takes to sort this out."

Ethan let go of the wooden thingy. It clattered against the pan. "Caleb, I appreciate your good intentions, but how on earth are you possibly going to fix this?"


	3. Chapter 3

_I was going to end this here, but perhaps I need to do another chapter about what happens when they go back to work?_

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you enjoyed it. I'm sure Cal will try his hardest to help Ethan - let's hope he doesn't get them into another mess!

 **X-Sammii-X** , I think Cal is very loving and he almost always means well. I think it would take a lot to stop Ethan from making dinner, if only because the alternative is Cal cooking! Thank you for your review.

 **EDSidekick** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you liked the misunderstandings. I hope it's realistic for Connie to choose not to tell Cal about Charlie - she does love making things awkward for him!

 **westlife4ever80** , no, Connie isn't happy - I'm not sure anyone is! I don't think it's impossible Connie will let it go as the Charlie situation is more important, but she might feel she has to be consistent. Thank you for your reviews.

 **Tanith Panic** , I'm glad you liked the Cal and Connie dialogue. I feel sorry for Elle. She caught someone breaking a serious rule and she reported him. She doesn't know Charlie well, so she couldn't see the whole picture and she approached the problem from an intellectual standpoint. All I condemn her for is breaking the rule about not searching people's lockers! Thank you for your review.

 **ETWentHome** , thank you for your review. It didn't sound like sarcasm, but thank you for being so considerate. Yes, I think Cal is going to feel very guilty when he realises that, far from helping Ethan, he's actually made it worse!

 _Thank you to **xEmmaPevensieDragonx** and **ETWentHome** for the folllow and favourite._

* * *

"I talked to Mrs Beauchamp," said Cal. "I explained that you're going through some stuff at the moment."

"Why were you talking to Mrs Beauchamp about me?" Ethan sounded agitated. "What did you tell her, Cal?"

"I just explained… you know… the background," said Cal.

Ethan was almost shouting now. "The background of what?"

"The background of what happened today," said Cal. "Exactly what caused you to be alone in an admin cupboard with a patient while she tried to rip your clothes off."

"You told Mrs Beauchamp about _that_?" gasped Ethan.

Cal nodded. "I had to, Ethan. You don't seem to realise you're in serious danger of being fired. I had to do what I could to help."

He heard another soft gasp from Ethan. This time, his voice was soft and disbelieving. "You mean someone else… who told her? Who told her what I did?"

"As far as I can work it out, the patient made a complaint about you to Elle and she reported you to Mrs Beauchamp," said Cal, slightly confused. Had Connie really not told Ethan why she was suspending him?

Or had Ethan forgotten about it because the symptoms were already here?

Cal put his hand on Ethan's shoulder. "Ethan, you do know you've been suspended, don't you?"

Ethan shook his head helplessly. "No, I can't be! Mrs Beauchamp didn't say she was suspending me! She just said I had to go home."

Cal felt a lump in his throat. Ethan was so young and he was already forgetting things. "I'm sure she must have said why, Ethan."

"She did say why," said Ethan. "She said she was sending me home was because I'd broken my glasses and I couldn't see well enough to work properly."

Cal looked him doubtfully. "Are you sure?"

"Yes!" said Ethan. "She asked where my glasses were; I said they'd accidentally got broken; she asked if I had any spares at the hospital; I said no; she said it wouldn't be safe for me to work without them so I'd better go home and as it wasn't that long until the end of my shift, I might as well stay at home and she'd see me tomorrow."

Cal frowned. "She said she'd see you tomorrow?"

Ethan nodded. "I really don't think she'd have said that if she was going to fire me."

"No… I really can't see Mrs Beauchamp doing anything other than getting right to the point," admitted Cal.

"Neither can I." Ethan sounded relieved. "I don't think I could cope with being fired on top of everything else."

"So, you haven't been suspended?" said Cal, just to check.

Ethan shook his head. "Not as far as I'm aware – and I think she'd have made sure I was aware."

"And she didn't mention the incident in the cupboard to you?" said Cal.

"No," said Ethan. "I don't think she had any idea about that. She didn't even ask how my glasses had got broken. She just sort of sighed the way I do when you forget to do the shopping." He paused. "But if you told her…"

Cal closed his eyes. If there had been a convenient wall, he would certainly have hit his head against it. "I promise, Ethan, I would never have done it unless I thought I was helping you. I overheard a lot of the staff talking about someone who'd broken a rule. I didn't see who else they could be talking about."

"Well, thanks very much!" snapped Ethan.

"Well, what was I supposed to think?" demanded Cal. "I heard that some guy had been suspended for breaking the rules. Rita and Jacob were saying how unlike him it was and what a nice guy he was and what a shame the patient had made a complaint. Then later, Rita said it was someone I was close to. Who am I closer to than you?"

Ethan sighed. "I suppose I can understand why you thought it was me."

"So of course, I went charging off like a knight in shining armour to defend your honour to Mrs Beauchamp," said Cal. He stroked Ethan's shoulder. "Ethan, I am so sorry. I really am. I don't know if the others were playing some sort of prank on me or if they were talking about Max or someone, but I obviously jumped to the wrong conclusion and now, instead of getting you out of trouble, I've got you into it, which is the last thing you need. I really am sorry, Ethan."

Ethan took in a shaky breath. "Well… I did break the rules. And if I get fired, maybe… maybe it's for the best. I don't want to keep working till I make a mistake. Maybe it's better to leave now."

"Ethan." Cal turned his brother gently to face him and took his sunglasses off. There were tears in Ethan's eyes now. "Come on, Nibbles. Come and sit down."

Ethan wiped his eyes and followed Cal without a word. Cal sat beside him on the sofa, his arm around him, while Ethan fixed his eyes on the carpet and blinked rapidly. "Do you know what the worst thing is, Cal?"

Cal put his hand over Ethan's. "Is it that you're in trouble because I messed up again?"

"No," said Ethan sadly. "The worst thing is that she wanted to have a baby with me. And she had no idea what that might mean. And I couldn't tell her."

Cal spoke reassuringly. "Why should you tell her? It's not her business. The point is you don't want to have a baby or even a quickie in a cupboard with her - and you don't have to."

"I feel like… I feel like I led her on," said Ethan.

Cal had to laugh. "A woman lies about her marital status, drags you into a cupboard, tries to tear your clothes off and you think you led _her_ on?"

"I must have done something to suggest I wanted that," said Ethan. "I asked her out for coffee. I let her think I was available for a relationship, which implies I was available for her to sleep with. To have children with."

"That doesn't make it acceptable for her to try to tear your clothes off, Ethan," said Cal. "Certainly not when she was just using you to get what she wanted! You don't _have_ to have sex on the first date, you know. You definitely don't have to have sex _before_ the first date!" He paused. "It does save you a bit of money that way though, I have to say."

Ethan was probably trying to give Cal some sort of disapproving look, but it didn't quite work with tears in his eyes. "I can't do it, Cal. I can't be like you."

"You're doing a much better imitation than I ever thought you would," said Cal.

Ethan wiped his eyes. "Maybe I need to be more like you in some ways, but I can't be irresponsible."

Cal thought about pointing out it didn't do him any harm, but he wasn't completely sure that was true and it was very unlikely to make Ethan feel better.

"I can't go on dates, Cal," said Ethan. "I can't let them think I'm just a normal guy."

Cal felt it wasn't quite the right moment to point out that no-one could mistake Ethan for a normal guy. "Of course you can. Having Huntington's doesn't mean you can't have relationships. Or that you can't have children. You can get the embryos tested in advance these days, Ethan. You'll have to be careful about accidental conception, but I'm not always careful and I don't have any kids."

Then Matilda came into his mind and he couldn't repress a sigh.

"But when do I tell them?" said Ethan. "When do I say: 'Oh, by the way, I have a degenerative condition and if our relationship goes anywhere, you'll have to be my carer one day and oh yes, there's a 50% chance of passing it on to any kids we have'. When do I say that, Cal? It's not something I could tell someone I've only just met."

"Of course not," said Cal. "And you shouldn't. Wait and see if the relationship is going somewhere first. Most relationships fizzle out."

"But I can't sleep with someone without letting them know there's a tiny risk not only of a baby but a baby with Huntington's!" said Ethan.

Cal shrugged. "Then tell her when you feel ready to sleep with her. I mean, knowing you, it will probably take you a couple of years to get to that stage anyway, so you'll know by then if it's going anywhere…"

"I just wish there was someone I could talk to about these things," said Ethan. "I know I've got you, but you're not going through this. There wasn't time to talk to Mum – and I could never have told her anyway. And now I'm in all this trouble at work…" He jumped up. "And I forgot the stir-fry!" He shook his head helplessly, tears coming into his eyes again. "It's too much, Cal. I can't cope."

"Hey, come here!" Cal held Ethan tightly. "You can get through this, Ethan. You can. Forget the stir-fry: it's my fault for distracting you. We'll get a take-away. I'll do what I can to sort things out with Connie. If someone else has had a complaint made and got suspended, he's going to be her priority anyway. I'll tell her it was a prank and it didn't really happen. I'm sure she'll have much less trouble believing I'd play a prank than that you'd take a patient into a cupboard."

"No. I can't let you do that. Please don't lie for me," said Ethan. "I did break a rule and whatever the punishment it, I'll take it."

Cal just nodded, though he still wanted to lie for Ethan. He wanted to protect him.

Ethan had so much to worry about already.

"And what about… my future?" said Ethan unsteadily. "My life?"

"We'll find some people who are going through this and talk to them," said Cal. "I'm sure there are support groups we can join."

"We?" said Ethan. He pulled away and looked at Cal, his eyes full of fear but also hope. "You'll go with me?"

"Of course I will," said Cal.


	4. Chapter 4

_I tried to wrap this up with one more chapter, but I've written two more and I still haven't got to the end. So there will be at least two more chapters after this._

 _I haven't seen tonight's episode yet, so this story might contradict what happens tonight._

 **EDSidekick** , thank you for your reviews and your request for another chapter. I think Cal is being very supportive of Ethan in the episodes - he's encouraging Ethan with what he wants to do and I like to think he will also be there when Ethan decides he does want to talk about things more seriously. He'll probably always tease him a little bit though! The support group scenes could happen.

 **Becs2202** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you enjoyed the talk between the brothers - I'm really hoping they will have a talk like this onscreen at some point. I thought Cal showed his supportive side when he spent his day off finding Ethan's spare glasses, but I need talking too!

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , I hope Cal will go with Ethan if he does decide to go to a support group - the groups are probably for the carers too and I imagine it would be really difficult meeting other people with the condition too. Thank you for your review.

 **X-Sammii-X** , I'm afraid the brothers aren't happy quite yet, though Cal must be so relieved Ethan hasn't been suspended! Cal does want to help, but it must be so painful for him, knowing how ill his brother is going to get. Thank you for your review.

 **20BlueRoses** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you liked the misunderstandings. There are more to come! I think Ethan might still be a little bit mad at Cal, but it has enabled him to say what was on his mind. But you're wrong... I don't want to write about the support group _quite_ yet... it will be Chapter 6 or 7.

 **westlife4ever80** , thank you for your review. It's horrible to think about what Ethan would do if Cal wasn't there. He does seem to be coping better now he's not avoiding Cal all the time, so Cal obviously does make a difference.

* * *

Ethan said he wasn't hungry, but to Cal's relief, he had no trouble demolishing the pizza Cal had ordered. They ate almost in silence. Cal couldn't stop thinking about what Ethan had said. He guessed Ethan was thinking the same thing.

So he was surprised when Ethan suddenly looked up and said: "Do you think someone really has been suspended?"

Cal looked at him for a moment. His concerns for Ethan had put the matter out of his mind entirely, but it was an interesting point. "Mrs Beauchamp didn't say anything about anyone being suspended, but if it is a prank, I suppose it is a pretty elaborate one."

"And look at the people who were involved in it," said Ethan. "I can see Jacob having a joke and Rita does have a playful side, though she does take her job very seriously. But I can't imagine Elle doing something like that."

"We don't know Elle that well: she might have a cheeky side," said Cal, but he wasn't convinced. "And why didn't Connie tell me?"

"Mrs Beauchamp does withhold information sometimes," said Ethan. "As she's every right to do. I also think she likes teasing you and wrong-footing you." He paused. "And there wouldn't have been a lot of point in playing a prank like that unless they knew I'd broken a rule - and I certainly didn't tell anyone."

Cal's eyes slid away from Ethan's. "It is possible someone might have overheard something…"

Ethan's face was filled first with confusion, then anger. "Who did you tell, Caleb?"

"I didn't say I'd told anyone…"

Ethan glared at him. "After all your experience of dating more than one woman at the same time, I'm surprised you're not a better liar."

Cal gave him an embarrassed smile. "Okay, I might have mentioned it to Iain and Jez. And Max and Jacob."

"Great," said Ethan. "Just _great_."

"I did ask them not to tell anyone."

"And that's going to work, isn't it?" said Ethan crossly. "And even if they didn't tell anyone, I bet you didn't bother to do anything sensible like checking you weren't going to be overheard."

Cal said nothing.

The anger drained out of Ethan. He sighed wearily. "Okay. So Jacob knew. He could have talked Elle into it – they're old friends. He calls her Pancake."

"I don't think someone called Nibbles is in any position to laugh at people's nicknames," sad Cal.

"I'm not called Nibbles by choice."

Cal ruffled his hair. "You know you love it really! But there's one easy way of sorting it out. We call someone we can trust and ask if anyone's been suspended."

"Do you think they'd know?" said Ethan. " _We_ have no idea, after all."

"I'm going to ask someone senior," said Cal. "Someone who doesn't get involved in the pranks. Someone I trust to tell me the truth."

"Mrs Beauchamp?" said Ethan doubtfully. "I'm really not sure about that, Cal."

Cal shook his head, laughing. "Of course I don't mean Mrs Beauchamp. You seriously think she'd tell me?" He picked up his phone and made the call.

It was answered almost immediately. "Hi, Cal. I know what you're going to say."

"I was wondering if you knew of anyone being suspended," said Cal.

There was a short silence. "Okay. Maybe I didn't know what you were going to say."

"Do you know who it is?" asked Cal.

Another pause. "I'm not really supposed to talk about it, but you'll find out soon enough. It was me."

Cal nearly dropped the phone. His mouth opened. He tried to breathe. He saw Ethan's concerned gaze, but ignored his silent question. "Can you repeat that, please, Charlie?"

"I'm the one who's been suspended," said Charlie. "I broke a rule. I was helping a mate out."

"Oh my God," whispered Cal, shaking his head.

Ethan's anxiety deepened. He reached for Cal's arm. "Cal, what is it? What's happened?"

Cal quickly shook his head at his brother and spoke remorsefully to his friend. "Charlie, I'm so sorry."

"Cal, it's okay," said Charlie. "I made a decision. I was fully aware of what the consequences might be and I'm prepared to take them. I'm sorry, but I've got to go or my dinner will burn. But don't worry. I'm big enough and old enough to cope."

Cal said goodbye and let the phone drop. He shook his head, then put it into his hands.

"What is it, Cal?" said Ethan.

"Charlie's been suspended," said Cal miserably. He lifted his head. "And it's all my fault."

Ethan stared at him. "What? How? What happened?"

"I asked him to find Mum for me," said Cal. "The method he chose wasn't completely legal."

"But that's nothing to do with his job," said Ethan. "If the police find out, I can see they might want to speak to him, but that's kind of separate from his working life."

Cal shrugged. "Maybe he found out using hospital equipment."

Ethan shook his head. "I can't see him doing that. And even if he did, why are they finding out now? You found out about Mum on Christmas Eve."

"Why else would he be suspended?" said Cal.

"I can't think of anything else he might have done," said Ethan, "but-"

"I've got to speak to Mrs Beauchamp," said Cal agitatedly. "I've got to tell her it's my fault. Tell her I put pressure on him or-"

He broke off at the sight of Ethan's horrified face. "Caleb, you'll do no such thing!"

"What: you think I should just let him get punished for helping me?" said Cal, his voice shaking. "I can't do it, Ethan. You don't know how much support he gave me. With Matilda; with Mum; with you – he was there for me so many times."

"That's not what I mean," said Ethan. He looked incredulously at Cal. "Have you not learned anything from today?"

"What about today?" said Cal blankly. "Learned what?"

"What if you're wrong?" said Ethan. "You were wrong when you thought I was the one who was suspended – and going to speak to Mrs Beauchamp to protest my innocence didn't exactly do me any favours. Do you really want to risk doing the same with Charlie? If you tell her he found out details of an adoption in a way that wasn't exactly above board, Mrs Beauchamp could call the police."

"But that must be why she's suspended him," said Cal. "What else could Charlie have done?

Ethan shrugged. "How am I supposed to know that? Possibly something to do with his son? But just because you don't know about anything else, it doesn't mean nothing else has happened. What Charlie did for you shows he's prepared to break the rules – and the law – for his friends. You're not the only friend he has." He looked seriously at Cal. "Cal, if you want to support Charlie, that's admirable, but all I'm asking is that you don't say one word to Mrs Beauchamp or anyone else until you're absolutely sure he was suspended for helping _you_."

* * *

A trip to the optician to collect three new pairs of glasses (one to wear and spare pairs for home and work) meant that Cal and Ethan were slightly late arriving for their shift. Connie had texted Ethan asking to see him as soon as he arrived, and it was two very nervous brothers who waited outside, waiting for her to summon them inside in response to their knock.

"Come in!" called Connie at last. "Dr Knight. This is an unexpected surprise."

"I'm here to support my brother," said Cal.

"Well, I'm sure _that_ inspires him with confidence," said Connie. "Especially after how much you helped him yesterday." She turned to Ethan, dismissing Cal from her mind if not from her office. "Dr Hardy, your brother told me a very interesting story about yesterday involving you and the admin cupboard. Now, I know better to take Dr Knight's word on anything, so perhaps you could explain what happened in your own words."

"Mrs Beauchamp, first I would like to apologise for fraternising with a patient in a cupboard," began Ethan, addressing his apology to his shoes.

"I think it was a bit more more than fraternising, Dr Hardy," said Connie. "But I am not asking for an apology at this time. Merely an explanation."

Ethan stumbled through a complicated explanation, his face not unreminiscent of a tomato. Cal had expected to find the moment amusing, but instead, he felt deeply sorry for his brother, who was only trying to get everything he could from life. Cal wished he could help, but he had a feeling it would do more harm than good.

"Thank you, Dr Hardy," said Connie, when he'd finally come to the end of his recital. "I'm prepared to accept the incident was not your idea and you were too... shocked to stop an unwell patient from dragging you around the hospital, but I must be consistent and punish you as I have punished others who have found themselves in this situation."

"No-one's ever quite been in Ethan's situation," said Cal. "Only Ethan could get himself into a situation like that."

"Perhaps so," said Connie. "But I have no choice, Dr Hardy. I am giving you a verbal warning, which will become a written warning if there are any further incidents of this nature. For today, you will work in Resus with patients who will be much too unwell to become completely overwhelmed with desire for you."

"Thank you, Mrs Beauchamp," said Ethan. "That's very kind of you."

Cal laughed. "I don't think Mrs Beauchamp was saying you were desirable, Ethan."

Ethan blushed. "Oh my goodness: I wasn't thanking you for that! It never even crossed my mind! It is rather flattering and certainly not something I hear every day, but I don't imagine for a moment that you meant it. I just meant you were kind not to give me a more severe punishment."

Connie shook her head. "Oh, I'm being kind to myself if anything, Dr Hardy. I have enough to contend with at this moment in time. The last thing I need just now is this kind of distraction."

"And that doesn't mean Mrs Beauchamp finds _you_ a distraction, Nibbles," said Cal.

Ethan squirmed. "I know that, Caleb!"

"Right: off you both go," said Connie. "I hope I won't see you in here again anytime soon."

"Thank you, Mrs Beauchamp," said Ethan gratefully,

Connie waited till he'd opened the door. "And Dr Hardy? Please try not to be so irresistible in future."


	5. Chapter 5

**westlife4ever80** , it is really much worse for Charlie than Cal and Ethan, but I find Charlie so difficult to write. I love Connie. She's got everything. She's funny, terrifying, intelligent and smoking hot. I want to be Connie! Thank you for your review.

 **X-Sammii-X** , thank you for your review. Cal has been looking out for Ethan a lot in this fanfic so I wanted Ethan to return the favour. Connie definitely has a sense of humour, in a terrifying way, but it's usually at Cal's expense! I can't help loving her though.

 **Becs2202** , I agree that Cal is enjoying being with Ethan - and I think Ethan is enjoying being with Cal too and trusting him more. They're a bit more alike now as Ethan is more relaxed and Cal is more responsible. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , Connie can be very kind, but the patients know more about that than her colleagues! I suspect she often does things out of kindness with the official reason that she can't be bothered. I'm happy you like the way I write Connie! Thank you for your review.

 **CBloom2** , yes, he is gorgeous! Probably the most gorgeous person in the whole hospital and it's not like he's short of competition. I'm not sure if Connie knows... in the original version of the story, she didn't know, but the story's grown and now I think she might! Thank you for your review.

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. I think I'm the only person in the world who does like Elle! But I do tend to identify with unpopular people. I want to hug her and explain the dynamics of the ED. I think very little would stop Cal from teasing Ethan!

 **20BlueRoses** , it's not really like Cal to go around making confessions, but I could really see it... I suppose it's all part of his talent for getting himself into a bigger mess! I'm trying not to forget about Charlie - he is the one who's suffering the most. Thank you for your review.

* * *

Cal closed Connie's office door and smiled at Ethan. "Well, that could have been a lot worse. You're off the hook – and Connie thinks you're irresistible. Not a bad morning's work – and you haven't even _started_ work yet."

"I'm glad you didn't tell Mrs Beauchamp about Charlie's role in finding Mum," said Ethan, through a fiery blush.

Cal slapped his hand against his forehead. "I knew I'd forgotten something!"

Ethan looked worried. "No, Cal, it's _good_ you didn't tell her. You could get Charlie into more trouble."

"No, I mean I forgot to ask her what Charlie did," said Cal. "The guy's been amazing to me, Ethan. Like a father. You're obviously my number-one priority, but I want to support Charlie too." He glanced towards the door and swallowed. "I suppose I'd better go back in there and ask her."

"I _strongly_ don't recommend it," said Ethan.

"What else am I going to do?"

"Ask someone who's not going to kill you," said Ethan.

* * *

Cal couldn't help but be aware of the coldness towards Elle. Despite the fact she'd hurt someone Cal cared for deeply, he wasn't without sympathy for her. She'd caught a member of staff breaking the rules and she'd reported him. It showed a lack of loyalty, but it technically wasn't wrong. Cal generally started breaking rules as early as his first day in a new hospital, but most people preferred to settle in before working out which rules could and indeed should be broken.

Elle hadn't been here long enough to know Charlie was the heartbeat of the ED; the one who kept them all together; the one to whom even Connie listened. To her, he was a guy who'd been found in possession of stolen medication. What was the poor woman supposed to think?

But most of Cal's sympathy remained with Charlie. However difficult the situation might be for Elle, it must be heartbreaking for Charlie.

Cal waited till he saw Elle on her own and spoke to her in a low voice. "Are you okay? I heard you had a rough day yesterday."

"I'm sure that's not quite the way everyone else put it," muttered Elle.

"To be honest, I haven't heard much at all," admitted Cal. "All I know is that Charlie has been suspended for breaking a rule and I'm guessing that you reported him."

Elle turned away. "Go and ask the others. I'm sure they'd be happy to tell you their version."

"I'd like to hear yours," said Cal. He wanted the true version and Elle was nothing if not honest. She was the only person who could really set Cal's mind at rest that it wasn't his fault. "My impression is that you reported him for breaking the rules. Was the rule to do with me?"

Elle stared at him. "You mean you're the one he was…" She stopped.

"The one he was what?" said Cal.

"Excuse me," said Elle. "I really need to get on."

* * *

It was a bit early for Cal to have his break, but he thought he deserved one after everything he'd been through over the last couple of days. It would also give him the chance to give Charlie a call. Perhaps this time, he might be more inclined to tell Cal what had happened.

But Charlie went right out of his head when he saw Ethan sitting in the staff room, his hand on his right shoulder and a look of pain on his face.

"Ethan, are you all right? What have you done?" Cal sat down beside him. "Come on. Let me see."

"It's nothing," said Ethan.

"Let me look anyway," said Cal. "Can you stand up? Let's get your top off first."

This was evidently quite painful for Ethan, but he gritted his teeth and stood with his arms in the air as Cal pulled his scrub top over his head. Once Ethan was bare-chested, Cal bent down and examined his shoulder carefully, first visually and then feeling it for signs of deformity.

"Cal, is this going to take long?" said Ethan, and hissed with pain. "I really need to get back to work."

"Not in this condition, you don't." Cal looked worriedly at his brother. "What happened? Can you remember?"

"Why wouldn't I be able to remember?"

"Well, if it happened on a night out…"

"Oh, I see. No," said Ethan. "I think it happened yesterday when the patient fainted on me. I wasn't quite expecting it."

Cal tried not to laugh.

"It's not funny!" said Ethan.

"No. Of course it's not," said Cal quickly. "You'd better book yourself in as a patient and have an x-ray."

"No!" said Ethan in horror.

Cal was confused. "Why not?"

"They'll want to know how I did it and I can't tell them!" said Ethan. "I don't want that all over my medical records. Please, Cal. If you want to be helpful, you can get me some paracetamol."

Cal hesitated. "Do you mind if I check to see if you've got the full range of movement?"

Ethan reluctantly agreed. Cal kept one hand on Ethan's shoulder and put his other hand in Ethan's. Slowly, he manipulated Ethan's arm, moving it forwards, backwards and upwards. Ethan managed not to cry out in pain, but Cal knew it was hurting him.

They were still standing there, Cal holding Ethan's hand and shoulder, when Lily walked in. She stared at them both as though she had discovered a new kind of virus – at least, that was Cal's first thought. His second thought was that Lily would probably find a new virus quite exciting.

"What are you doing?" said Lily icily. "Dr Hardy, you are supposed to be in Resus."

"We are… dancing," said Ethan.

"Yes. We're practising for Ethan's salsa class," said Cal.

Lily seemed to be focusing her gaze very carefully above Ethan's head. "Do you usually practise without a shirt?"

"I... only the men," said Ethan.

"Yes. I'm the woman, so obviously I've got my shirt on," said Cal. _What am I saying? Did I seriously just say I was a woman? Ethan so owes me for this._

Lily gave Cal a cold glance. "I think being the woman suits you, Dr Knight. You should do it more often. Dr Hardy, I want you back in Resus, fully-clothed, in five minutes."

"Yes, Dr Chao," said Ethan. If Cal had said it, it would have been sarcasm, but Ethan just sounded terrified.

Cal lowered Ethan's arm into its natural position. "Ethan, I really don't think paracetamol is going to sort you out. I'll prescribe you some codeine or something. How about I go up to the pharmacy and get it sorted and you get dressed slowly?"

* * *

Cal was going to prescribe codeine, but he wasn't sure how to spell it, so he decided on tramadol instead. He knew how to spell that one because there had been a memo about it going missing. He got Ethan a box of 50mg tablets and hurried back down to the staff room. There was no sign of Ethan, so Cal poured a glass of water, pushed a tablet out of the packet and went to Resus. He didn't want to go in in case Lily saw him, so he waved through the doors at Ethan.

Ethan gave Cal his usual unimpressed look, but when Cal held up the glass of water and the tablet, he smiled, said a few words to the patient, and hurried over to Cal. "Thanks, Cal. I appreciate it." He swallowed the tablet.

Cal took the glass from him. "What should I do with the tablets? It's quite a big box."

Ethan fished in his pocket for his key. "Could you put them in my locker for me, please?"

"Sure," said Cal. He put his hand on Ethan's good shoulder. "Now you need to be careful. No heavy lifting and _no_ being irresistible."

Ethan rolled his eyes.

* * *

Cal wasn't entirely surprised to be called to Connie's office. Since starting his shift, he had flirted with one patient (she started it), antagonised another (she started it) and only avoided prescribing incompatible medication because Louise was on the ball.

No-one was quicker than Louise at spotting a mistake from a doctor and no-one was less shy of pointing it out.

Cal tried to convince himself he didn't feel like a naughty schoolboy who'd been summoned to see the headmistress.

"Dr Knight," said Connie. "As you may or may not know, Senior Charge-Nurse Fairhead has been suspended from duty."

Cal lifted his head almost enough to meet Connie's eyes. "Yes, I did know, but I don't know what for."

"Really?" said Connie. "Dr Gardner seems to think you might know quite a lot about it."

"Does she?" said Cal. His sympathies with Elle were rapidly fading. She must have been listening when he and Connie had discussed Charlie outside Connie's office. _Why can't she just go gooey-eyed over a porter like a normal doctor_ _?_

 _Not that I'm gooey-eyed over the porters._

"I don't know why Elle would think that," said Cal. "I asked her what happened. I don't think I'd have done that if I already knew."

Connie looked severely at him. "I suggest you start talking, Dr Knight, before I draw my own conclusions."

Cal silently begged Ethan to get him out of trouble, but unfortunately, Ethan's psychic connection to Cal only worked when he was figuring out all the things Cal didn't want him to know about. If he did make things worse for Charlie, he'd never forgive himself, but he didn't think he was going to leave the room alive without confessing _something_. And if Connie already knew..."Okay. When I found out I was adopted, I wanted to find out who my real mum was, so I asked Charlie to help me. He called in a few favours and found me her name and address."

Connie frowned slightly. "Well, that's certainly illegal, but not something I can really concern myself in."

Cal felt himself relax slightly – but the feeling was quickly replaced by confusion. "What did you think I'd done?"

"You really have no idea why Senior Charge Nurse Fairhead was suspended?" said Connie.

"No – I asked Charlie last night and Elle this morning, but they both had to rush off," said Cal.

"You're sure Senior Charge Nurse Fairhead hasn't _helped you out_ recently?"

Cal cast his mind back. "He's always very helpful - he was amazing when I lost Matilda and Mum, and he got me and Ethan out of trouble once when Zoe caught us figh- um, faffing about in the staff room." _Caleb, you complete and total moron!_ "But I can't think of anything he did for me or Ethan that might have got him suspended."

"But he has been known to cover for you? When you were... _faffing about_? You sound more like your brother every day."

"That was ages ago," said Cal. "I think I've actually kept the rules pretty well recently. I've been too worried about Ethan to think about anything else."

"Yes, it has been a rough few months for Ethan," admitted Connie. "Dr Knight, have you had any aches and pains recently? Have you taken any painkillers?"

Cal blinked at the change of subject. "I've taken paracetamol for hang… er, headaches occasionally, but nothing else. Oh, if you saw me with that box of painkillers, that's not mine. It's Ethan's."

Connie looked very interested. "Then perhaps I need to speak to Dr Hardy too."


	6. Chapter 6

**X-Sammii-X** , I remember Cal talking to Elle once, but it was just a very brief conversation about a patient. Cal is usually either flirtatious or terrified with Connie and he had quite a matey relationship with Zoe, so it will be interesting to see how he and Elle relate. Maybe Cal should keep quiet before he gets the whole ED in trouble! Thank you for your review.

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , I think you're right about Cal getting Ethan into trouble with Connie! At the very least, he's aroused her suspicions. I'm glad you liked Cal's italic thoughts. Thank you for your review.

 **CBloom2** , thank you for your review. You're so right: if one of them would just tell the truth, things would be a lot easier - but being truthful didn't do Elle any favours. I love it when Cal tries to protect Ethan. Or the other way round, for that matter.

 **EDSidekick** , thank you for your reviews. I'm glad I made you laugh! I think the writers were probably quite restricted in what they could do with the storyline - if it was funny, there might be complaints that they were making light of painkiller addictions. I worry about that myself. I don't suppose Cal's lack of spelling ability would usually stop him from prescribing a drug, but I can imagine Ethan pointing out all Cal's spelling mistakes. No, they're not helping themselves - or anyone else!

 **Tanith Panic** , I'm not sure my self-control would have been as good as Lily's! I'm glad you enjoyed Cal's quick substitution of words - though I do wonder if he succeeded in fooling Connie. Thank you for your review.

 _Thank you to **Gingersnaps2507** for the favourite._

* * *

"What? Ethan doesn't have anything to do with any of this!" said Cal.

Connie looked at him for a moment. "Perhaps not. In which case, I'll discover that for myself when I speak to Dr Hardy."

"Do you want me to go and get him for you?" said Cal.

"Thank you for that unusually kind offer, Dr Knight, but I think it's best if you stay here." Connie picked up the phone and dialled a number. "Rita, is that you? It's Connie. Can you please find Dr Hardy for me and send him to my office? He's working in Resus today… Yes, I'm aware it isn't a nurse's job, but I already have Dr Knight in my office and I don't want to leave him here alone." Her voice dripped with sarcasm. "You can always ask someone else to do it if you feel the task is completely beneath you. All I care about is that it gets done." She slammed the phone down.

"Dr Hardy, I believe you have been taking pain medication recently," said Connie.

Ethan's eyes went wide with surprise. "Yes, I have, actually."

"What painkillers exactly?" said Connie.

Ethan considered. "Mostly paracetamol, but I have taken codeine today."

"That's a pretty strong painkiller, Dr Hardy," said Connie. "Can I ask why you were taking it?"

"For… um… a headache," said Ethan.

Cal wanted to tear his hair out. He knew why Ethan didn't want Connie to tell Connie about the cupboard incident, but to tell a lie like that, when Connie might easily notice for herself that Ethan had trouble using his arm, was asking for trouble.

"And did you get the codeine over the counter or on prescription?" asked Connie. Her voice was very polite.

This could only mean Ethan was in trouble.

"On prescription." Ethan looked like he was about to wet himself. Or perhaps as though he already had.

"Who prescribed it for you?" said Connie.

"Um, Dr Knight prescribed it for me," said Ethan.

"Oh, really?" said Connie in a tone of deep interest as she looked at Cal. "You must have thought this headache of Dr Hardy's was very severe."

"I could see for himself he wasn't feeling good," said Cal. _Ethan Hardy, if we both get home alive, you are going to have serious lying lessons._

"I'm sorry to hear that, Dr Hardy," said Connie sweetly. "You're lucky to have Dr Knight looking after you. May I see the tablets, please?"

Ethan glanced fearfully at Cal. "They're in my locker."

Connie stood up. "Then let's take a little trip to your locker, Dr Hardy, hmm?"

* * *

Cal could tell Ethan was trembling and wanted to give him a hug, but he didn't want to draw Connie's attention to them and he wasn't completely sure Ethan would like it.

When they reached the staff room, Connie stood beside the table and gestured towards the lockers. "There you are, Dr Hardy. The floor is yours."

Ethan felt in his pocket and went slightly pale. "I'm terribly sorry, Mrs Beauchamp, but I can't find my keys."

He was stammering slightly, but Cal didn't laugh at him. He couldn't.

He wasn't sure exactly what was going to happen, but he had a feeling something was very wrong and he hadn't helped.

"You've lost your keys?" said Connie. "How… inconvenient."

Panic flashed across Ethan's face, then he turned to Cal. "Cal, I gave my keys to you. Have you got them?"

"Oh, right! Yes, here you go." Cal handed them over. Ethan's hand shook as he tried to open the locker - Cal knew it was just nervousness, but he couldn't help thinking of the time when it would be something else. He was also worried that the action of turning the key might jar Ethan's shoulder. Cal longed to take the keys from Ethan, but he knew Ethan wouldn't appreciate that, so he stood and waited for what felt like hours until the locker was finally opened.

Ethan picked up the box of tablets and held them out to Connie.

Connie took them and her eyebrows shot up. "What medication did you say you were taking, Dr Hardy?"

"Codeine," said Ethan.

"How very interesting," said Connie. "This medication is tramadol."

"Oh, right, yes!" Cal remembered now. "I told Ethan I was giving him codeine, but then I… changed my mind."

"Without consulting the patient?" said Connie.

Cal didn't want to admit he'd done it because he couldn't spell. "I knew Ethan wouldn't mind." He appealed to his brother. "And you don't, do you?"

"Oh, no, not at all," said Ethan.

Connie moved closer to Ethan's locker. "May I?"

"Y-yes, of course," stammered Ethan.

He stepped back and Connie began to remove everything from Ethan's locker, dumping it onto the table.

"What are you doing?" said Cal.

The look Connie gave him clearly signified that she did not consider this a question she needed to answer. She finished searching the contents of Ethan's locker. "Right, Dr Hardy. I suggest you put everything back in your locker and follow me. You too, Dr Knight."

Cal saw the hurt and bewilderment in Ethan's eyes. He'd had a very tough couple of days and now he was injured too. "I'll put everything away for you, Ethan."

"I don't think I've heard you say that before," said Ethan, but his voice was trembling.

"Then grab the offer while it's here!" said Cal. He packed Ethan's possessions away as carefully as he could and locked the locker. He handed Ethan the keys and the little procession returned to Connie's office.

"It's very interesting that tramadol was the medication prescribed," said Connie. "Partly because you both insisted it was codeine – anyone in our profession really ought to know the difference – and partly for another reason. Do either of you remember a recent memo on tramadol?"

Cal nodded. He looked at his brother in time to see Ethan's eyes widen in shock. Ethan's voice shook as he asked: "Do you think I'm the one who's been stealing medication?"

"Well, _someone_ has been," said Connie significantly.

Cal stepped forward. He'd been asked not to interfere, but enough was enough. "Connie, you can't accuse him of that!" He put his hand on Ethan's shoulder. "Ethan would never steal anything. Not even I'd do steal medication and I've had some pretty bad hangovers. What's all this got to do with Charlie anyway?"

Connie looked as though she wasn't going to tell him, but then she sighed. "Some medication was stolen from a patient recently. It was found yesterday in Senior Charge Nurse Fairhead's possession."

"It's probably not those exact painkillers," said Cal.

"It has that exact patient's name on," said Connie. "All Charlie will say is that he was helping out a friend. He won't say who." She looked at Ethan, then swung her suspicious gaze to Cal. "So, you prescribed this medication for Dr Hardy and the box was found in Dr Hardy's locker. Yet Dr Hardy couldn't name the medication he'd been prescribed and the presence of the keys in your pocket, Dr Knight, suggest that you were the last person to open his locker."

"Cal picked up the tablets from the pharmacy for me," explained Ethan. "He brought me a glass of water and one of the tablets. I don't remember seeing the box, but I asked Cal to put it in my locker."

Connie opened the box. "Only one tablet missing – which you say you consumed, Dr Hardy."

Ethan nodded earnestly. "Yes. I consumed it, Mrs Beauchamp. "

"Mrs Beauchamp, I get that our behaviour looks a little bit suspicious," said Cal, "but you can't really think it's anything to do with Ethan? The other lot of tramadol was actually stolen. This lot has clearly been prescribed for Ethan by me. Why would Ethan or I steal it when we're both able to prescribe it?"

"Because it would look a bit suspicious if you were prescribing large quantities of tramadol – particularly if it's for your brother, when, as you know, it is against the rules to treat members of your own family," said Connie. "Far better to steal it and hope no-one noticed. And it worked - until we changed the system and put a little spanner in somebody's works."

"But not in ours," said Cal.

Ethan lifted his head. There was a light in his eyes. It might have been the electric light reflecting off his glasses, but Cal didn't think so. "Mrs Beauchamp," he said, "I don't think anyone would steal tramadol unless they were addicted to it. There would be no need. There's nothing to suggest I'm addicted: if you check my medical records, you'll see that before today, I hadn't been prescribed tramadol for quite a while. I'm sure it's the same for Dr Knight."

Cal nodded. "I haven't been prescribed anything lately and you can't buy tramadol over the counter even in small quantities, so we couldn't have got addicted that way."

"I realise this could be a rather lengthy process," said Ethan, "but it seems to me that one possible way of finding the culprit – if you're sure it's someone who works in the hospital – is to look and see which members of staff have been prescribed-" Ethan stopped. His eyes widened and he gave Cal a look of panic.

Cal had no idea what he was so worried about. He thought it was a really good idea.

"Dr Hardy, do you have any idea who it is?" asked Connie.

"No," said Ethan. "Absolutely no idea."

Cal knew he was lying. He seriously did need lessons.

Connie was glaring at Ethan. "Dr Hardy, this isn't helping."

"I know it isn't and I'm so sorry," said Ethan unhappily. "I do have a name in my mind, but I could be wrong. I don't want to accuse anyone of anything." He looked fearfully at Connie. "Is that what you _want_ me to do?"

It looked as though Connie's answer to that would be a resounding yes – but then she sighed and seemed to deflate. "No, Dr Hardy. I don't want you to do that. You can go now, both of you. Please don't discuss this with or within earshot of any of your colleagues. Your method won't guarantee success – indeed, it might be an elaborate attempt to deflect suspicion away from you – but it's certainly worth looking into."


	7. Chapter 7

**X-Sammii-X** , I think Connie likes trying to catch people out. She's very good at it! Cal and Ethan's behaviour probably does seem quite suspicious as they've both made an untrue statement about Ethan's medication. I love Connie too. She's a great character and so much nicer than she pretends. Thank you for your review.

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. It was a horrible situation for Ethan - I'm glad Connie spoke to them together or I think it might have been even worse! Cal might be used to being suspected of things he hadn't done (though it still won't be nice), but I doubt it happens to Ethan often.

 **Tanith Panic** , not many people beat Connie in a battle of wits, but I think Ethan has convinced her to call a temporary truce... which is probably still an achievement! There is more confusion to come, but this is quite a serious chapter. Thank you for your review.

 **EDSidekick** , thank you for your review. They really aren't helping themselves! Though at least they are trying to help each other for once. Ethan could easily have said he caught a fainting patient - he doesn't have to say where! I think it's often easier to hide something by sticking as close to the truth as possible, but a lot of people, particularly when under pressure like Ethan, will blurt out the most unnecessary lies.

 **20BlueRoses** , thank you for your review. I don't know if anyone else in the ED has been prescribed tramadol, but I'm working on the assumption that if they were, it wouldn't necessarily be mentioned. The characters are always injuring themselves so it's possible some of them might have taken pain relief afterwards.

 **westlife4ever80** , I'm not sure Cal would have kept his job for this long at a real hospital! Rita should definitely have been let go for framing Connie for murder. I think a lot of hospitals would have got rid of Big Mac and possibly Lofty. Lily could have gone for bullying Alicia - if she hadn't been fired already. Thank you for your reviews.

* * *

Cal couldn't help feeling anxious as Ethan got ready for work. "Are you sure you'll be okay to work? I really don't mind swapping shifts with you."

"I'll be fine," said Ethan. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Cal went over to his brother. "You've had a rough couple of days, Ethan. That girl in the cupboard… injuring your shoulder… Mrs Beauchamp thinking you're a lying, stealing drug addict…"

Ethan looked a bit surprised, but he smiled. "I'm not going to be asking any more girls out till I've got things a bit clearer in my mind, and my shoulder is much better now I'm taking the tramadol."

"And Mrs Beauchamp?" said Cal.

This question caused a slight amount of worry to enter Ethan's eyes. "If she follows my advice and checks the medical files, she'll find out who the thief is soon enough." He sighed sadly. "Though I really think I'd prefer it if she didn't. I might not have given her the name, but I've given her a possible means of finding out."

"You mustn't blame yourself, Ethan," said Cal. "And whoever this person is, they need help. We can't help them if we don't know who they are."

He wondered if he would have given the name in Ethan's position. He wasn't sure. Anyone whose actions had caused Ethan and Charlie to be suspected of theft was unlikely to arouse Cal's sympathies, but he still didn't like the idea of dobbing in a mate.

* * *

Charlie didn't look as pleased to see Cal as he'd hoped, but he invited him in and got him a drink.

"Is there anything I can do?" said Cal. "To help, I mean?"

Charlie's smile was warm. "I appreciate the thought, Cal, but there's nothing anyone can do and I'm not going to worry about it. I broke a rule. I'm prepared for the consequences, whatever they are."

"But you can't just let Elle force you out!" said Cal.

Charlie shook his head. "She isn't. What happened was the result of a number of people's actions – including mine. If I'd reported the rulebreaker myself – and I must say, I came pretty close to it – this wouldn't have happened."

"You could report them now," said Cal. "I mean, they're obviously not much of a mate if they're letting you take the rap for this."

"If they spoke up now, it could ruin their career," said Charlie.

"But at the moment, you're letting them ruin your career." Cal felt quite emotional.

"I've had a good long career, Cal. I've been lucky to get this far. This other person has a good few years left in them yet."

Cal's brain started ticking over. 'A good few years' was a relative term, but Cal didn't think the description could be applied to someone as young as himself. He focused on the older members of the ED. It couldn't be Elle under the circumstances and it definitely wasn't Connie. Dylan was probably a bit young for Charlie's description, though his OCD had made him do some strange things in the past. If he believed that taking tramadol every day would make him save more patients, he probably would take tramadol. Not much was known about David, though he seemed it have mental health problems and might seek the lift an opiate could give him. But Ethan was right: it was most likely to be someone who'd been prescribed it recently. Someone who was _injured_ recently.

Cal felt his brain click into gear. Jacob had been trapped in a house with Connie. He was injured so it was possible he'd been prescribed tramadol. He'd been shot as well, though that had been a while ago. If you included that as a possibility, you had to include the attack on Noel too and you couldn't quite rule out David as he could have injured himself a few months ago as well. As for Dylan, if he'd injured himself and was in pain, would he even mention it?

Not to Cal.

Cal groaned silently. Half the ED could probably have done it.

"Cal." Charlie's voice interrupted his thoughts. "You can try to work it out if you like, but I'm not going to confirm or deny anything."

"Is it Jacob?" asked Cal in a shaky voice, hating the fact he was even asking.

"I'm not telling you," said Charlie simply. "There's nothing to be gained from telling you – it would only cause you a lot of unhappiness and what would you do with the information?"

Cal dropped his gaze. Charlie certainly had a point. If Cal didn't know who it was, he wouldn't have the dilemma of whether to report them or not.

"It's honestly better to leave it," said Charlie. "This person is going through a lot and they need to deal with it in their own way."

"But it's not fair!" said Cal. "You don't deserve this, Charlie."

"But does the person I'm protecting deserve what will happen to them if I report them now?" said Charlie. "They've made a terrible mistake, but they were in terrible physical pain. Addiction can happen quickly and it has a powerful hold over the mind as well as the body."

Cal shook his head helplessly.

"There's nothing to gain by focusing on the negatives," said Charlie. "All I can do is let Connie and Rita conduct the investigation in the way they see fit and wait and see."

Cal looked at him incredulously. "Aren't you even angry?"

"Not at all," said Charlie. "Connie, Rita and Elle were only following the rules – unlike me - and the person who is addicted to tramadol only stole because they were desperate."

Cal felt close to tears. He knew he wouldn't be able to change Charlie's mind.

He sighed and changed the subject. "Want to go out somewhere?"

Charlie shook his head and laughed. "No thanks, Cal. I know you mean well, but you don't have to feel sorry for me. I'm fine."

"I didn't mean that," said Cal. "I just meant we've both got the day off work so we should go and do something fun. Go to the casino. Go and see a film. Go to the park and kick a ball around."

"Well, I'm glad you didn't think of the stereotypical 'old people' hobbies," said Charlie, smiling. "But if you really want to spend some time with me, what would you say to a bit of lunch in a pub and then we could go for a drive?"

"Sure," said Cal. "That sounds good."

* * *

Cal and Charlie sat on the beach together, not far from the spot where Emilie had died. They'd come here after talking about her death in the car. Cal hadn't intended to talk about it, but the words had come and he hadn't stopped them. Perhaps he'd needed to talk about Emilie. He didn't really like to mention her to Ethan. He hoped they would talk about her eventually, but he'd decided to wait until Ethan was ready to talk.

"I just hope I'm doing the right thing," said Cal. "I think some of the stuff Ethan does is great. I'm really glad he tried to make a move on that patient... um, I mean a girl who was a patient at his GP's surgery. It's not his fault she only wanted his babies. I think the salsa classes are probably good for his confidence as well as his complete lack of rhythm and I think it's good for him to come out with the lads more regularly. I think getting to know people outside work can really help your working relationship. It's much easier asking a favour of someone when you've been completely off your faces together."

"Assuming, of course, that you can remember being completely off their faces with them," said Charlie.

Cal laughed. "Yeah, there is that! But on a basic level, I approve of what he's doing. He's not holding back and he's trying new things. But I wonder, Charlie. Is Ethan throwing himself into these new things because he wants to make the most of life and if so, is he doing the things he's always secretly wanted or the things he thinks he ought to want? Or is he filling his life so he never has to stop and think and admit to himself that this is real?"

Charlie looked sympathetic. "It's a difficult one, Cal. It could be a mixture of all three. I think we can all be a bit like that. Even when we're facing something that's nothing like as terrible as what Ethan is going through, there are times when we want to seize the moment and times when we want to hide. We don't always feel the same. There are days when we feel completely all right; when we feel confident the future will work out. And times when we feel trapped and there's no way out."

Cal looked at Charlie closely, wondering if he felt like that. Today, Charlie had seemed relatively cheerful and accepting, but perhaps Cal had caught him on a good day. Recovery from anything was a slow process with lots of ups and downs. There were days when Cal felt okay and days when he missed his mothers like crazy and wished he'd had more time with them. There were days when he believed Ethan would cope with whatever was thrown at him and days when he felt he was just waiting for Ethan to fall apart.

"Am I doing the right thing?" he asked Charlie in a low voice. "Am I helping Ethan?"

"It's impossible to say," said Charlie. "Sometimes all you can do is look at whether what you're doing is good or bad – and I think you're doing good things, Cal. You're giving Ethan to do the space to do what he wants to do, but you're never far away. You're always watching out for him. And although there are times when he doesn't seem quite like the Ethan we've known for the last couple of years, he does usually seem happy."

"But is he really happy?" asked Cal. "Or is that just an act?"

"I don't know," said Charlie. "Ethan probably doesn't know either. He needs time, but you're giving him time. You're being his big brother. No-one could ask any more."


	8. Chapter 8

_I know the number of people on painkillers is getting ridiculous - I hope you can do what it says in the title and suspend your disbelief!_

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you enjoyed the Cal and Charlie scenes. I really wanted to include Charlie as he's really the most important person in this storyline and I knew Cal would worry about him.

 **Teeloganroryflan** , thank you for your review. I'm so glad you're enjoying the story so far. I love a bit of Ethan whump too! I hope you continue to enjoy it. Thank you - it's not often I'm told my stories are fast-paced!

 **X-Sammii-X** , I'm just grateful to get reviews from you at all! I couldn't let Connie sack Cal and Ethan - there have been far too many departures recently already. I hope we will see more of them in the show too - there is a lot of unfinished business. I'm glad you liked the scene on the beach. Thank you for your review.

 **EDSidekick** , I can't quite see Charlie gambling or playing football, but I do kind of want to! I agree it was good for them to spend some time together as Cal needed to talk and Charlie probably felt a bit useless with no-one needing his help. I can imagine his other friends are pretending everything is fine so they won't worry him, but he loves helping people. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , I'm not sure the 'fall' will happen in this story as it has a different focus, but I can imagine the fact his little brother isn't behaving like himself will always be in Cal's mind, even when he has other people to worry about too. Thank you for your review.

 **Becs2202** , thank you for your review. It is a pity there's been nothing about Cal's feelings on the show, but he does seem to be a lot more supportive of Ethan, which I would guess is because of Ethan's diagnosis. Cal and Ethan will eventually realise Mac is the thief, but they will take a few wrong turnings first.

 **Is-there-somewhere-x** , thank you for your review. I love Cal and Charlie's relationship and it's a pity there hasn't been much of it recently, but I'm hoping that once Charlie is back in the ED, something could happen! I'm so happy you like the way I've written it.

 **westlife4ever80** , Casualty would not be the same at all if Charlie ever left - and I suppose one day, he will have to! I think he did leave once, but he came back pretty quickly! He would be very difficult to replace as not many characters could do what he does. Thank you for your review.

 _Thank you to I **s-there-somewhere-x** for the follow._

* * *

When Cal got home from seeing Charlie, he was surprised to find Ethan home before him. He was about to ask what was wrong when he noticed the ice pack on Ethan's shoulder. "Is it worse?"

Ethan nodded. "I caught a child trying to climb through one of the holes in the ceiling. I told him to get down, but he froze and panicked. I shouted for help and grabbed hold of his legs so he'd feel safer and he let go. I managed not to drop him, but I was in a lot of pain after that."

"I can imagine," said Cal sympathetically.

"Jacob came in to help, only to discover the kid was fine and I was white as a sheet," said Ethan. "He said he'd sort me out some tramadol, but I explained I was already taking it."

Cal frowned. "He said tramadol, did he?"

"Presumably Mrs Beauchamp hasn't told him I'm the official suspect!" said Ethan. He tried to laugh, but it was too shaky to convince Cal.

"Did Jacob actually write the prescription?" asked Cal.

Ethan looked surprised. "No, I don't think so. I don't think Jacob's allowed to prescribe, is he?"

"And he didn't ask anyone else to do it?"

Now, Ethan seemed bewildered. "Why on earth would he do that?"

Cal sighed heavily. "I talked to Charlie today and I got the impression that the person he's covering up for is an older person."

Ethan gasped. "You don't seriously think Jacob-"

"You said yourself it was probably someone who's been prescribed tramadol," said Cal. "Jacob was injured when that house collapsed _and_ he was shot. The chances of him not being prescribed pain relief…"

"I'm not sure Charlie would think of Jacob as one of the older guys," said Ethan.

"Who do you think it is then?" asked Cal curiously. "You said you'd thought of a name."

Ethan looked uncomfortable. "I'm not sure I should say."

"Oh, come on, Ethan. No-one's listening."

"Okay," said Ethan unwillingly. "I think it's Noel."

"He came to mind too," admitted Cal. "He could have been on painkillers after he was attacked."

"But it's not just that," said Ethan. "I was standing near reception a while ago and Noel offered someone a prescription painkiller. I wasn't really paying attention and I can't actually remember which painkiller he said, but I remember thinking: 'Why is Noel carrying strong painkillers around with him? '. Then I got caught up in whatever I was doing and I forgot all about it till I was thinking about the theft and Noel kind of popped into my head."

Cal looked hopelessly at Ethan. "Isn't it crazy? I can't imagine Noel stealing anything, but I can't imagine anyone doing that."

"You obviously have been imagining it if you came up with Jacob's name," said Ethan.

"I came up with all kinds of names," said Cal. "We are quite an accident-prone lot in the ED. I was on codeine after I dislocated my shoulder. I noticed they kind of lifted my mood sometimes and tramadol does that too. Anyone's who's been a bit down might have noticed that. I think Jacob was pretty down after Connie dumped him. Noel and Big Mac broke up for a while too."

"Caleb. Noel and Mac aren't in a relationship," said Ethan.

"That's what they say," said Cal with a smile, but his amusement didn't last. "And then there will be all the people who hurt themselves and kept quiet about it. Dylan wouldn't tell us if he had a bad back. Neither would Lily, though as I said, I really think Charlie meant someone older."

"A bad back," said Ethan thoughtfully. "Hasn't Big Mac had a-" He shook his head in despair. "What are we doing? We can't go around suspecting the whole ED. We need to put it out of our minds completely."

"Right," said Cal, and carried on thinking about Jacob. What did they know about Jacob, really? He'd walked in off the streets and the next thing Cal knew, he was working there.

"You're still thinking about it, aren't you?" said Ethan.

"Aren't you?" said Cal.

Ethan sighed. "Of course I am. I'm trying to remember who Noel offered the tablets to. I've got a feeling it was Mac and I'm almost sure he said no, but that doesn't prove anything. He might have said no because he doesn't like taking painkillers or he might have said no because he was trying to hide an addiction."

"There's nothing quite like trying not to think of something to make you think about it," said Cal.

"Maybe you should try not to think about doing the shopping," said Ethan thoughtfully. "Maybe then you'd actually remember to do it!"

* * *

Cal tried not to think about which of his colleagues might have got Charlie into trouble, but he found himself keeping a very close eye on them when he returned to work the following day. He saw Noel clutch a hand to his head and wondered if he had a headache or if he'd been dealing with someone incredibly difficult on the phone.

He noticed Jacob moving slightly awkwardly and wondered if it was a result of pain or if pushing trolleys always made him walk at an odd angle.

He heard Dylan telling someone from the maintenance team that there was something wrong with the light in Bay 4 and Cal found himself wondering if the OCD symptoms were back.

Then Cal walked into the staff room to discover Louise wrapping a bandage around her wrist.

"Are you okay? Can I help?" said Cal at once. "It's not easy bandaging with one hand."

For once, Louise accepted his offer gratefully, but it was probably one of relatively few offers he'd made her that weren't completely inappropriate.

"What happened?" asked Cal as he took the bandage from Louise.

"I don't know," admitted Louise. "I did hurt it a couple of months ago when Max didn't clean the floor properly and I slipped. It seemed to get better, but every so often, it starts really hurting."

"That doesn't sound good," said Cal. "Do you want me to have a quick look?"

Louise seemed unusually grateful.

Cal made a quick examination, also asking about the location and severity of the pain and what made it worse. He finished his list of questions with: "Are you taking any pain relief?"

"I was taking something," said Louise. "I can't remember the name of it though."

Cal looked at her closely. He hadn't considered Louise as he didn't think she fitted into the age range Charlie's words had suggested, but some women looked younger than they were. And while lots of people struggled to remember the strange names of medications, Louise would be familiar with many of them. "How old are you, Louise?"

"Excuse me?" Louise snatched her hand away from him. If it hurt, the anger masked the pain. "Who do you think you are?"

"Well, um, you see, the possible diagnosis… the various possible diagnoses… they might depend to some extent on age? Like um… Kienbock's disease."

Louise stared at him. "I don't think it's that. I had an x-ray when I did it and there was no fracture. And isn't the pain supposed to be over the lunate?"

Cal didn't think it was Kienbock's disease either, but now he'd introduced the idea… "You can't pick up Kienbock's disease up in an x-ray. Not in the early stages. You'd need an MRI scan."

"What? You seriously think I could have Kienbock's disease?" said Louise.

"Um… it's one of many possibilities. But if you're getting recurring pain, I think you need to get it checked out."

* * *

Ethan had insisted on coming to work, though he was being kept on minors. Cal was grateful for that, though it was his opinion that Ethan should be sent home.

When Ethan came over to him with a slightly wild look in his eyes, Cal assumed it was the pain. "Go home, Ethan."

"I'm sorry?" Ethan looked confused.

"You're in pain, aren't you?"

"Oh… I'd actually forgotten about the pain," said Ethan. He looked around and lowered his voice. "Come with me. Quickly." He took Cal's arm and dragged him into the admin cupboard.

"Ethan. I told you. I'm not interested in being your latest conquest," said Cal.

"My latest _what_?"

"Considering what you usually use this room for…"

Ethan glared at him. "Please listen to me. I think I know who stole the tramadol."

"I think I might know as well," admitted Cal.

"You saw her too?" said Ethan.

Cal nodded. "She won't admit to taking tramadol, but she's booked herself in as a patient, which is a good start."

Ethan looked at Cal with something like admiration. "How did you manage that?"

"Well, you know what they say about the charm of the Knight…"

"I'm really not sure I should repeat what people say about it," said Ethan. "I wouldn't want to hurt your feelings."

"I'm sure they mean it as a compliment," said Cal.

"I could tell you if you wanted to make sure."

"Maybe later," said Cal. "So, what do you think we should do? "

Ethan looked almost respectful. "It sounds like you've done everything already. You did well to convince her. Not that there's much we can do here, but-"

"Where else is she going to get an MRI scan done?" said Cal.

Ethan stared at him. "An MRI scan? You mean on her brain?"

Cal scoffed. "Of course I don't mean on her brain!"

"On her stomach then?" said Ethan doubtfully.

"No, of course not. On her wrist!" said Cal. "Ethan, you really need to go home. You're not making any sense."

"You're the one who's not making sense!" said Ethan. "Why would Mercedes need a scan on her wrist to show if she's been taking drugs?"

"Mercedes!? " said Cal blankly. "What does Mercedes have to do with anything? I'm talking about Louise. She has recurring wrist problems. I checked her notes and she was prescribed tramadol for the initial injury."

Ethan's eyes lit with interest. "She's a possibility then. But I thought it might be Mercedes because I've seen her around here a few times."

"She was an in-patient for a while, she's pregnant and her son's had a fractured pelvis," said Cal. "She has reason to be visiting the hospital. Besides, isn't she supposed to be clean now?"

"I know she's supposed to be," said Ethan defensively. "But it's not that easy to give up."

Cal couldn't resist teasing him. "You sound almost like you speak from experience, Nibbles."

"Caleb! Will you just be serious for-" Ethan stopped as the door opened and someone entered.

At the sight of Cal and Ethan, the person jumped and a box they were holding fell to the floor.

Cal grabbed it. "Tramadol," he said.


	9. Chapter 9

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. I love Cal when he's being a good big brother. I'm glad you're trying to guess who entered the room - you could be right!

 **Tanith Panic** , I suspect I'd have no trouble finding a volunteer to slap Louise's wrist for her! I hate being asked for my age: everyone always says: "Oh, I thought you were older." Except when I'm online, where they think I'm much younger! I'm glad you're finding this exciting. Thank you for your review.

 **Is-there-somewhere-x** , thank you for your review. The Casualty writers were a big help with this story - as well as creating the characters, they've also injured most of them! I'm so glad you're enjoying seeing Cal and Ethan get into messes. It could happen again!

 **X-Sammii-X** , I'm glad you like the cliffhanger. Big Mac is a good guess - he will definitely be making an appearance sooner or later. I'm not sure Knight and Hardy are quite on the level of Sherlock and Watson, but I'll take that as a compliment! Thank you for your review.

 **EDSidekick** , thank you for your review. I love the idea of Ethan's naughty cupboard! I hope you won't mind if Cal steals that phrase and uses it in a later chapter.I'm glad the bit about not thinking about it works - I thought they should probably feel a little bit guilty for suspecting their friends, but I needed them to keep thinking or the story wouldn't work!

 **20BlueRoses** , thank you for your review. I'm glad the confusions are enjoyable without being too confusing. I'm glad you like the banter between Cal and Ethan. I thought even when they were doing 'serious investigating', they'd still be teasing each other.

 **westlife4ever80** , I'm glad you like the way this fits with the original story. I might change the ending a bit - Big Mac's plan to catch the thief nearly had a tragic end, which probably wouldn't fit with the comedy in this story, but I'll see what I can do Thank you for your review.

 **Becs2202** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you like the way I like the brothers - they are such brilliant characters and so much fun to write. There are more twists to come - I hope you enjoy them!

* * *

"What are you doing? That's mine!"

"Is it?" said Cal. "If it is yours, it'll have your name on, won't it?"

"Just give it back, Cal! Please."

"Why are you taking tramadol?" asked Ethan.

"It's none of your business!"

Cal sensed the movement before he saw it. He jumped between the intruder and the door. "You're not leaving this room till you've told me why you're taking this painkiller. And why you've come in here to take it."

"You know why. It's because of the situation with Charlie. I don't know exactly what happened, but if anyone sees me taking tramadol, they're going to think it's me. As you do."

Cal gave the suspect an assessing glance. "Yours wasn't a name that occurred to me, I had to say."

"Or me," added Ethan. "We thought it was someone older."

"I suppose Charlie's words were quite ambiguous," said Cal. He read the label on the box. "That doesn't look like your name to me. First name has one letter in common… surname has none."

The suspect tried to snatch the box back. "It was a mistake. I collected her prescription at the same time. I must have given her the wrong box."

"Sounds like a bit of a coincidence to me," said Cal.

"On the contrary: it is easily done."

"How long have you been taking it?" asked Cal.

"For a few months."

"Who prescribed it?"

"It doesn't matter. Will you please return my property and let me go. You have no right to keep me here."

Cal leaned against the door, his arms folded. "No, you're right. We don't. But we do have the right to report you for being in possession of tramadol that doesn't belong to you. So, how about it? Are you going to start talking?"

Lily sighed. "I don't have to discuss my medical history with you, Cal. You are not my doctor."

"I know, but Charlie's been suspended from work and he hasn't done anything to deserve it," said Cal.

Lily's eyes closed for a moment. "I know and I am very sorry, but I am not the person who's been stealing the tramadol so there's nothing I can do to help."

"You can help by proving your innocence," said Cal.

Ethan held up his hand. "Cal, wait a moment. Lily, aren't you having work done in your flat at the moment?"

Lily nodded. She looked confused.

Cal could understand why. "Ethan, what has that got to do with anything?"

"And you're staying with Robyn," said Ethan. For some reason, he was blushing. "And it is a medical phenomenon that when women live in the same house they sometimes become… synchronised."

Lily looked uncomfortable too. "I have only been staying there for a week so that is not yet the case for Robyn and me. But Robyn was clearly in pain and I told her I took tramadol for the condition and offered to prescribe it for her. As my prescription was due for collection today, I collected both and accidentally handed the wrong box to Robyn."

Ethan nodded. "Yes, I see."

"I don't!" said Cal.

"I think perhaps you might prefer not to," said Ethan. "So, Lily, this is the first time Robyn has been prescribed this medication."

Lily shook her head. "She has been prescribed it in the past, on a short-term basis, but not for this condition. She has always used over-the-counter pain relief before, but it has not really been sufficient."

"Sufficient for what?" said Cal.

Ethan ignored him. "How long have you been taking this medication?"

"I would say for about four months," said Lily. "But I am not addicted. I take it on only one day a month and usually only four tablets. I do have a backlog, which I've considered disposing of, but I have decided to keep them for the time being in case someone decides to investigate my tramadol use." Her voice took on a tinge of sarcasm, reminiscent of Connie. "I hope my explanation is satisfactory."

Cal frowned. "Why do you only take it on one day a month?"

"Cal, I think we can let Lily go now," said Ethan. He smiled at Lily. "I advise you and Robyn to swap your boxes of tablets, but I don't think there's any need to worry."

"Yes, I think there is, actually!" said Cal. "Why can't you just tell me what you're talking about?"

Ethan was still red. "It's none of your business, Cal. Lily, I'm sure it will be fine to take your tablet in the staff room, then you can have a glass of water too. I can keep watch if you're worried."

Cal was getting impatient now. "Look, maybe I'm being stupid, but if Lily needs someone to keep watch when she's taking tramadol, it sounds like she's got a problem to me."

"Perhaps, but not the problem you're thinking of," said Ethan. "Please step away from the door now, Cal."

Cal folded his arms. "Not until you've told me what's going on."

Lily sighed. "All right. Robyn and I take tramadol for menstrual cramps."

"Ah," said Cal. "Right. I see. Yes." He moved away from the door. "Ethan, why don't you escort Lily to the staff room? I need to um… get on with some work."

* * *

Cal leaned against the reception desk in what he hoped was a casual manner as Noel looked something up on the computer for him. "So. How are you, Noel?"

Noel gave him a wary look. "I hope you're not chatting me up."

Cal laughed. That was a line he'd used in the past, though he preferred to make them a bit more inventive. "Sorry, mate, but you're not my type. I was just wondering… are you fully-recovered now?"

"Yes, I'm fine now, thanks," said Noel. "They warned me I might get a few twinges, so I've been carrying painkillers just in case, but I don't think I've used them more than once or twice."

Cal looked at Noel closely. Claiming he didn't need painkillers was exactly the kind of thing an addict might do. "What painkillers have you been taking?"

"Why do you want to know that?" said Noel, a bit defensively.

"I'm a doctor," said Cal. "And I'm your mate. I'm concerned."

"Are you going round asking everyone about their painkiller habits then?" asked Noel.

 _Only the ones behaving suspiciously… and that definitely includes you, mate_.

"No, of course not," said Cal, trying to sound hurt. "I was just concerned about you and I wanted to make sure you were getting taken care of in the best possible way. That's all." He walked away.

"Cal!"

Cal turned and looked back at him. Was Noel about to confess all? The Knight had charm, but he hadn't expected it to work that quickly.

"I've got that information you requested," said Noel.

* * *

Cal was sitting in the staff room, trying to put the finishing touches on a plan which involved calling Noel away from the reception desk and having a good look through his belongings. Cal was regretfully coming to the conclusion that he needed Ethan's help when Jacob appeared.

"You all right?" said Jacob.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit worried about Ethan," said Cal. "He's hurt his shoulder and he really needs to be off work, but he insists on working."

"He's a grown man," said Jacob.

"Yeah, so he really should know better," said Cal. "When Ethan hurts himself, he doesn't recover quickly. I wish he was more like you, but he's not."

"More like me?" said Jacob curiously.

"I mean, when you get injured, you just seem to bounce back," said Cal innocently. "Get shot: bounce back. Get nearly killed when a house collapses on top of you: bounce back."

Jacob grinned. "It's not that easy, but I don't like to let things get on top of me. Except for a certain clinical lead."

"Did they give you any painkillers for it?" asked Cal. "For the injuries, I mean. I imagine the pain Connie gave you was pretty good."

Jacob looked at him for a moment and started to laugh. "Playing detective, are we? Well, who am I to spoil your fun? You'd better search my locker. Come on, Detective Knight."

"Oh, I… I didn't mean…"

"Course you did! It's written all over your face." Jacob pulled various items out of his pockets and put them on the table. Then he unlocked his locker. "Here you are! Knock yourself out."

Cal walked slowly towards the table. He knew Jacob could be staging all this to put him off the scent, but Jacob's mirth seemed genuine. Cal went over to the table, but he didn't see any tablets. There were none in the locker either. Cal knew this didn't prove anything, but Jacob seemed so relaxed about the whole thing.

"I can't wait to tell the lads about this in the pub tonight!" said Jacob.

"Jacob, this isn't funny," said Cal. "Charlie could lose his job."

"No, there's nothing funny about what's happened to Charlie," agreed Jacob. "And if someone out there is addicted to painkillers, then that's not funny either. But you as a detective…" Jacob started to laugh again. "I think that might be one of the funniest things I've ever seen."

* * *

Cal almost wasn't surprised when he went to the admin cupboard and found Ethan in there with his arm around a girl. It was getting to the stage where he'd be more surprised to find Ethan there alone.

"It's all right, Robyn," said Ethan. "Just keep breathing for me. Slow, deep breaths. That's good."

"Sorry, Ethan," said Robyn shakily. "I don't know what happened. I just felt so anxious."

"It happens sometimes," said Ethan sympathetically. "It's happened to me. The ED is a terrifying place to work at times. But in your case, it could be a side effect of the tramadol."

Robyn stared at him. "How do you know I'm taking tramadol?"

"Lily dropped a box of tramadol and Cal picked it up for her," said Ethan. "It had your name on it."

"Oh, I see." Robyn breathed some more. "She gave me the wrong box. She had one too."

"It's easily done." Ethan finally looked at Cal. "Did you want something?"

"Yeah." Cal collected what he needed and then hesitated, not wanting to say much in front of Robyn. "I need to talk to you. I've got an idea."


	10. Chapter 10

**X-Sammii-X** , I love funny detective novels. The two best I've read recently both have (completely different) detectives called Ethan Knight, which was a surprise! If I'm managing to write a funny detective story, then I'm very happy! I'll have to see if I can write some more scenes for Jacob and Cal - Jacob isn't completely ruled out yet. Thank you for your review.

 **CBloom2** , thank you for your review. You're right - I'm not sure Cal would get very far if he decided to become a detective for real. As a doctor, he goes by gut instinct a lot and often gets it right, but he's had years of training and experience as a doctor. This is something a bit new.

 **Tanith Panic** , it's not mean at all to hope it takes Cal and Ethan a long time to find the perpetrator - well, they might think it's mean, but I'm taking it as a massive compliment! I thought Jacob would definitely see the funny side of being investigated by Cal and Ethan. Thank you for your review.

 **ETWentHome** , thank you for your review. I left it open who the person was in the hope at least some people would think it was Mac, so I'm really glad you did. That's one thing we can do that the Casualty writers can't - no-one could mistake Lily for Mac on TV!

* * *

Ethan looked upset. "Why _my_ phone?"

"Because if it's my phone, he'll think it's a joke," said Cal.

Ethan looked unhappily around the cupboard. "And why in here?"

Cal couldn't help grinning. "Ethan, I get why you don't want to invite your ex-girlfriend's dad into your naughty cupboard – God knows what you and Honey got up to in here! But before you requisitioned it for your own _very_ personal use, this cupboard was an admin cupboard And Noel's admin staff, isn't he?"

"It's not my naughty cupboard!" said Ethan, flushing hotly. "I've never done anything naughty in here and the only time I went in here with Honey was before we were going out. She couldn't find the light switch so I switched on the light for her and then left." He frowned. "I was quite concerned about her. She was speaking in a very husky voice and her pupils looked a bit dilated, so I thought she might be coming down with something. I asked her if she was okay and said she didn't look too good, but she seemed a bit annoyed. I think she might have had back problems too – she was kind of swaying her hips and holding her head on one side."

"Um… riiiight," said Cal. "I was going to ask you where you do your naughty stuff if not in here, but on second thoughts…"

"I don't do naughty stuff anywhere!" said Ethan.

Cal smiled to himself. "Are you sure this isn't your naughty cupboard? You're looking all hot and bothered already and you're only in here with me."

"It's hot in here," muttered Ethan.

"Thank you," said Cal, smirking. Not that he wanted his brother to find him attractive, but Cal did like to annoy him.

Ethan glared at him. "I didn't mean that and you know it!" He found Noel's number and started typing. _Hi Noel, I don't suppose you have the spare key to the administration cupboard? I am afraid I very foolishly seem to have_

"Ethan! it's a text, not a novel!"

 _got myself locked in_ , typed Ethan. _I realise this is entirely my fault, but I would really appreciate it if you would let me out yourself as I really don't want anyone else to know the true extent of my stupidity. Thank you very much and I apologise for the inconvenience._

"You just wait till Noel posts that text on twitter," said Cal.

Ethan didn't exactly go pale, but some of the red faded from his cheeks. "It can't be helped. If I sent a short text, he'd never believe it was from me."

* * *

Cal waited till Noel was out of sight, then went beside the admin desk and sat in Noel's seat.

"Can I help you?" said Jack's latest replacement. She was much prettier than Jack, but sadly didn't share Jack's interest in flirting with Cal.

"I've got a headache," said Cal. "I was wondering if Noel had any paracetamol."

She looked at him incredulously. "You're the doctor and you're trying to get pills from the receptionist?"

Cal smiled. "Have you ever tried getting pills from one of the doctors? We had a theft a while ago and it's like getting a date from a nun. It's just not going to happen."

As he spoke, he was sliding his hands under the desk, checking every shelf and drawer he could find.

His fingers closed around something and he gasped in triumph. He slid the little box into his pocket and stood up. He winked at the girl. "See you later."

"It would be difficult to avoid me, considering I'm stuck here on reception."

* * *

Cal arrived at the naughty cupboard just in time to see Noel opening the cupboard door.

Cal's jaw dropped.

A topless Ethan was standing with his arms around Elle.

"Ethan? What the…" Noel obviously couldn't believe what he was seeing either.

"I didn't realise Elle was in here," explained Ethan. "She was… behind one of the shelves, kind of. But once I did know…."

"You decided to take your top off," said Noel.

"No, I took it off before I realised she was here," said Ethan. "I'm really hot."

Cal laughed.

"Oh, no, I mean the _cupboard_ is hot," said Ethan. "Not me. I know I'm not hot. Thanks for unlocking the door, Noel. We'll be out in a minute."

"Right." Noel put the spare key in the door and walked off.

Elle lifted her head from Ethan's shoulder and wiped her eyes. "Sorry."

Ethan's face was full of sympathy. "Please don't apologise. I actually hid in here a few times after Honey broke up with me."

"I knew this was your naughty cupboard!" said Cal triumphantly.

"More my crying cupboard," said Ethan with an embarrassed smile. He turned back to Elle. "Please don't worry. I'm sure everything will be okay. It's so stressful working here and sometimes we do fall out, but I'm sure it will sort itself out. Lily had a few problems before Christmas: she lost her father and she was naturally very upset and she made a few unwise decisions, but everything's fine now."

"I didn't realise how amazing Charlie was," said Elle.

"Of course you didn't," said Ethan gently. "How could you? You don't know him. He's just an old guy with tramadol in his locker. Of course you were going to be suspicious. I'm sure I'd have done exactly the same when I first joined."

Cal looked around the room, trying to pretend he wasn't terribly proud of Ethan for being so lovely, and something caught his eye.

It was a blister pack.

A blister pack that had formerly contained tramadol.

Cal picked it up. "Okay. I'm pretty sure this wasn't here when I locked you in, Ethan. And I know you didn't plant it here. So there's only one way it could have got here."

Ethan didn't move from Elle's side. "I'm sure there's an explanation, Cal."

"Yes, I'm sure there is," said Cal. He walked back and forth, playing with the blister pack and quite frankly enjoying the moment. "So, Elle, you went to Connie, claiming to have found the tablets in Charlie's locker. They were shocked and horrified. Not because Charlie had done it but because you'd put them in a position where they were forced to punish him."

"I thought it was the right thing to do," said Elle.

"Technically, it _was_ the right thing," said Ethan supportively.

" _So_ shocked and horrified," continued Cal, "that it didn't even _occur_ to Connie to question whether what you said was true. But it has occurred to me. How did you manage to see inside Charlie's locker?"

"He left the key in the door," said Elle. Defensively, she added: "But I wouldn't have looked inside if I hadn't already been suspicious. I asked him how the problem of the stolen tramadol had been resolved. He refused to tell me." She looked apologetically at Ethan. "It seemed like he was hiding something."

Ethan offered a smile. "And you were quite right, of course. He was."

"But we only have _your_ word for it, Elle, that this conversation with Charlie even took place," said Cal. "We only have _your_ word for it that the tramadol was ever in Charlie's locker. I think actually the tramadol was in _your_ locker and you wanted a convenient scapegoat. So you chose the guy who looked just the right age to be picking things up and putting them absent-mindedly in his locker."

"Very nicely-argued, _Detective_ Knight," said Elle. "But completely wrong."

Cal smiled pityingly. "But you would say that, wouldn't you?"

"Um, Caleb," said Ethan hesitantly.

"Not now, Nibbles."

"No, Cal." Ethan's voice was firm this time. "You said Charlie told you he was covering up for the person who stole the tramadol. But if Elle had stolen the tramadol, she would never have reported him. Why would she report someone who was covering up her crime?"

"But the tramadol wasn't really in Charlie's locker," said Cal triumphantly. "She just _said_ it was."

"And then what?" said Ethan. "Charlie told Connie he'd never seen the tablets before and Connie chose not to believe him?"

"Obviously not!" said Cal.

"Or did he decide on the spot that he would lie to protect a doctor who barely knew: a doctor (I'm sorry, Elle) who had searched his locker without permission?"

"Okay, maybe he didn't do that," admitted Cal.

"I really think it's far more likely he's covering up for a friend, as he said," said Ethan.

Cal held up the blister pack. "Then what is Elle doing with this?"

"I think we should let Elle explain that, don't you?" said Ethan. He smiled apologetically at Elle. "If you want to, I mean. It's not really our business."

Elle sighed. "It was a stupid idea. I know it was. I just felt so bad that I'd done that to Charlie and I wanted to do something to help, but all I could think of was leaving the blister pack in here for someone to find."

"So they'd know the thief was someone who was working here today – and not the guy who'd been suspended?" said Cal.

Elle shook her head. "That wouldn't work, unfortunately - it could have been here for days. Besides, everyone knows Charlie isn't the thief. But I thought if something like this was found, maybe everyone would stop looking at me like I murdered someone and start looking for the culprit." She looked away. "I'm sure I deserve everything that's being said about me, but while it might relieve their feelings, it doesn't help Charlie."

Cal felt himself deflate. He knew he could have argued with Elle. Again, they only had her word for anything.

But he believed her.

"You don't deserve any of the things people are saying about you," said Ethan kindly.

Elle gave a wry smile. "So, they are saying things about me? Thought as much."

Ethan went red. "Oh, I'm sorry… I didn't mean… they're not saying anything _really_ bad…"

Elle patted his arm. "Ethan, when you do get around to taking a girl into your naughty cupboard, she's going to be a very lucky girl."

Ethan blushed even more. "Oh… um… thank you."

Cal enjoyed Ethan's embarrassment for a while, but then he looked at the blister pack again. "Elle, where did you get that blister pack from?"

"It was in the bin in the staff room," said Elle.

Cal gave her an incredulous look. "You're searching through bins now?"

Elle hesitated. "I saw someone throw it away."

"Who?" asked Cal excitedly.

Elle didn't say anything.

"Come on, Elle! Tell us!" said Cal.

"Can you really blame her for not telling you?" said Ethan. "After the way everyone reacted when she reported Charlie?" He turned to Elle. "You don't have to tell us anything. But it doesn't automatically follow that the person who threw it away is the thief. It's possible they found it lying around and decided to throw it away. I often do that myself."

Elle considered for a while. Cal could hardly keep still with impatience. But finally, Elle nodded. "The person who threw it away was Max."


	11. Chapter 11

**ETWentHome** , I think Cal would agree with you that he'd getting quite good at this! And you're right. It would be a very bad idea for Cal to forget about what he's got in his pocket... Thank you for your review.

 **Gillian Kearney Fan** , it is good Elle told the truth - not that she's under any obligation to tell Cal and Ethan anything, but she's probably saved herself a bit of trouble that way. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , no-one is shiftier than Max. He works in shifts and he's a porter so it's his job to shift things. I've always had a fondness for cupboards. EDSidekick called Ethan's cupboard his 'naughty cupboard' and I loved it! Thank you for your review.

 **X-Sammii-X** , Cal will never stop annoying Ethan! They probably should be saving lives rather than trying to save Charlie's career, but they are lovely boys. I think Cal would do anything for Charlie. Thank you for your review.

* * *

Max was standing in a quiet corner, morosely looking through pictures on his phone when Cal and Ethan found him. He didn't seem aware of the brothers' presence and Cal couldn't resist.

He swiped the phone from Max's unsuspecting hands. "This must be one of your pictures, Ethan!"

As he'd intended, Ethan had a look. The picture of Zoe made him blush bright red and cover his eyes with his hands. "Why on earth would that picture be mine?"

"It was taken in your naughty cupboard," said Cal.

Max finally showed some interest. "Ethan's got a naughty cupboard?"

"No!" said Ethan.

"Oh, yes," said Cal. "He's been in there with Honey, Lily, Robyn, Elle, a random patient… he actually asked Noel to join him in there earlier, but Noel took one look at Ethan topless and ran away."

"Caleb!" said Ethan. "You know it wasn't like that at all!"

Max took the phone back. "We usually used the on-call room, but we liked a change of scene occasionally. But I'm sure you didn't come here to talk about Zoe. Have you got your handcuffs or did Ethan leave them in his naughty cupboard?"

"Handcuffs?" squeaked Ethan, looking terrified.

"You know. So you can arrest me," said Max. "That's why you're here, isn't it? I'm the latest person on your list of suspects?"

Cal frowned. "Suspects? What are you talking about?"

"Don't play dumb, Cal," said Max. "Everyone knows you've been questioning us all about the tramadol. I was wondering when it would be my turn."

"Everyone knows?" said Cal.

The hint of a smile appeared on Max's face. "Robyn and Lily think they've got away with it, but Louise says she can't relax because she keeps expecting you two to jump out and frisk her." He laughed. "And from what I've heard about you, Ethan, it could happen!" He clapped Ethan on the shoulder and Ethan screamed.

"That's… my… bad… shoulder," he whimpered.

"You'd better have some more tramadol," said Cal.

Max's ears pricked up. "Some more what? You mean Ethan took the tramadol and now he's staging all this to deflect suspicion?"

"Ethan steal the tramadol?" Cal had to laugh. "He couldn't even steal a kiss." He stopped laughing. "We'd better go to the staff room, Ethan and get you some… wait a minute."

Ethan looked worried. "Cal, are you all right? You should probably sit down. You look like you're about to have a seizure or something."

"Hilarious," said Cal sarcastically. "I just remembered something. I've got just what you need."

How could he even have forgotten? He'd found the tramadol in Noel's drawer. What was he doing, running round after Elle and Max when he already knew who the culprit was? What was wrong with him?

He whipped the box of out his pocket and presented it to Ethan.

Ethan's eyes bulged. "Not funny, Cal."

"What's not funny?" said Cal.

Max was smiling. "Er, Cal, I think you brought out the wrong box there."

"Wrong box? It's tramadol, isn't it? The tramadol I found in Noel's drawer?"

"Not exactly," said Max.

Cal looked down at the box he was holding. When he read the label, he almost dropped it in shock. "Viagra?"

"Viagra," agreed Max with a smile.

"It's not mine!" said Cal quickly. "I got it from Noel's drawer."

"No: you said you got some tramadol from Noel's drawer," said Max. "You must have got it confused with the box you already had in your pocket."

"I did not already have this in my pocket!" said Cal. "This was the box I got from Noel's desk. I… I must have forgotten to look at it properly."

Even Ethan was laughing now. "So I've got a naughty cupboard and you've got viagra?"

"I'll do a swap if you like," said Cal.

"No, thank you," said Ethan.

There was a click and a flash as Max took a picture of Cal on his phone. "Just wait till everyone sees this!"

Cal snatched the phone away from him.

"Hey! Give that back!"

"We need to speak to you first," said Cal. He drew out the empty blister packet and showed it to Max, surreptitiously (he hoped) checking it really was tramadol. "Elle says she saw you throwing this away."

Max took it, frowning, but then his face cleared. "Yeah, I remember this. I didn't realise it was tramadol though."

Ethan looked very confused. "Do you remember every item you throw away?"

"I do, actually," said Max, looking quite proud. "It's not often I throw anything away, so when I do, it's a bit of an event."

"Where did you find it?" asked Cal.

"Find it?" said Max blankly.

Ethan tried to help. "Where did you pick it up?"

"I didn't actually pick it up," said Max. "I don't really do things like that. You know. Picking up rubbish. It's not really my job."

"Then why did you throw it away?" said Cal. "Did someone stick it to your back and write 'kick me' on it?" He laughed. "I remember doing that to you once, Ethan. I stuck it on your back before we left for school."

Ethan glowered at him. "I remember. Everyone kept kicking me."

Max shook his head. "That wasn't very nice, Cal."

"Just answer the question," said Cal.

"No," said Max.

Cal stared at him. "Are you refusing to answer the question?"

"No, that was my answer," said Max. "You asked me if someone stuck the blister pack to my back and write 'kick me' on it and they didn't. So I said no."

"I think what Cal meant," said Ethan, "is how did the blister pack come into your possession?"

"Oh!" said Max, as though he'd finally uncovered a great mystery. "Dylan gave it to me and asked me to throw it away. He was a bit weird. Not normal weird. It was like it scared him or something."

"He's got reason to be scared of he's the tramadol thief, getting rid of the evidence," said Cal.

Max looked doubtful. "Since when is giving something to me a good way of getting rid of anything?"

"It was almost a very good way," said Cal. "You didn't look to see what it was and if Elle hadn't seen you throwing it away, we'd never have known."

"So, I helped then," said Max. He looked pleased.

"You've helped a lot," said Ethan kindly.

"So, who have you ruled out so far?" asked Max.

Cal sighed. "Technically, I'm not sure we've really ruled out anyone. I don't think it's Elle because she would be crazy to report the guy who's keeping her secret. I don't think it's Louise because she's telling everyone how much pain she's in and I think the tramadol thief will be keeping very quiet."

"Unless it's a double bluff," put in Ethan.

Cal shook his head. "That would involve Louise having some control over what comes out of her mouth."

"But if she can't control what comes out of her mouth and she's in pain," said Ethan, "wouldn't she talk about being in pain whether she's the thief or not?"

"I... um... stop making difficulties," said Cal. "I don't think it's Jacob, though I'm not crossing him off just yet. Maybe he was a bit too eager for me to search his locker, but I can't imagine a thief enjoying this quite so much."

"It was Jacob who told me about it," said Max. "Did you know he's running a book on who you two try to get arrested?"

"He's taking bets on who stole the tramadol?" said Cal.

"No: he's taking bets on who _you_ think stole the tramadol," said Max. "Jacob isn't expecting you to get the right person."

"Jacob could be in for a surprise then," said Cal. "I don't think it's Lily and Robyn: they have a valid reason for being on tramadol and I… I don't think there's any need to question them any further."

"I don't blame you," said Max. "I saw Robyn had tramadol and I asked her what she was taking it for and she told me. She actually _told_ me. Can you believe it? Why couldn't she have thought up some lie, like that she stole it from a patient and let Charlie take the rap?"

Cal was surprised. "You didn't have this problem with Z… oh God, am I really asking this? Don't answer the question, Max. I do not want to know."

"There's Noel," broke in Ethan quickly. "I'm inclined to think he is off the hook now. It's possible he's carrying tramadol around with him so there's less chance of someone finding it – but you'd think he'd be equally careful with viagra. I'm really not sure because I've not actually experienced the problem myself-"

"How would _you_ know if you've experienced erectile dysfunction or not?" asked Cal.

Ethan ignored him. "-but I would think the embarrassment about the problem would be at least as strong as the fear of being caught stealing pills."

"Yeah. You are actually right about that," admitted Cal. "I know which I'd prefer." He looked at the box of viagra. "Max, you couldn't…"

"No," said Max.

"Ethan?"

"No."

Cal glared at them both and jammed the box back into his pocket. "If this gets out, you are both dead. Right?"

"Right," said Ethan and Max.

"Good," said Cal. "Is there anyone else, Ethan?"

"Only Mercedes," said Ethan. "I've seen her around the hospital a few times. But on second thoughts, I don't think she'd come here. She'd have her own suppliers and she'd have much less opportunity than someone who actually works here."

"Unless the hospital is her supplier," said Cal. "There might not be a tramadol addict in the hospital at all – just someone who's supplying drugs to someone outside the hospital."

Ethan shook her head. "I don't think there's anyone in the ED who'd do that. Not unless they're getting something from Mercedes in return."

"Noel might be!" Cal couldn't resist it. "Or trying to. He's obviously trying to get somewhere with someone!"

Ethan shot him an unimpressed look that wouldn't have looked out of place on a clinical lead. "We could check her file: see if there are any records of tramadol in her system."

Cal pretended to be shocked. "Ethan Hardy! Are you suggesting we steal patient files and read their test results?"

"Um… yes," said Ethan. He rubbed his shoulder. "But as Max has given us the tip about Dylan, it seems only right to follow that up first."

Cal gave him a stern look. "Not till you've had your tramadol."

"I'm not sure I'd dare go near a tramadol in this place," said Ethan.


	12. Chapter 12

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , I'm glad you like the idea of Cal mistaking the tramadol box for something else - I can imagine Cal assuming he's right about something without even looking! The credit for the 'naughty cupboard' goes to EDSidekick - it sounded like an effective way for Cal to tease Ethan! Thank you for your review.

 **CBloom2** , I think Cal and Ethan are better-looking than the Chuckle brothers, but I can see the resemblance! I'm glad you like Ethan feeling nervous of taking his painkillers in case it arouses suspicion. I can't see anyone suspecting our lovely Ethan though. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , thank you for your review. The story didn't start out as a comedy or a detective story, but somehow it's become both! There does seem a certain justice in Louise living in fear of Ethan, as Ethan and many others have lived in fear of her. Though I'm not sure how much I want to imagine Noel and his viagra!

 **X-Sammii-X** , thank you for your review. I agree that Cal wouldn't need viagra, but he would really hate being caught in possession of it! He's so concerned about his image, in a sweet way! I hope the site is working better for you now - I had problems with saving drafts and it can be very frustrating.

 **ETWentHome** , they're gradually getting there! They've just got to hope no-one actually makes them go and do some work! I'd like to write more about Jacob and his bets as it might be interesting to see who suspects whom, but I'd need to think about that. Thank you for your review.

* * *

Cal and Ethan found Dylan in a cubicle with a rather large needle. When he told them to get out, Cal thought it prudent to obey, but they hung around and caught him on his way out.

"Is there a problem?" said Dylan.

"I wouldn't say there's exactly quite a problem," said Ethan.

"Then you don't need to talk to me," said Dylan, and started to move away, but Cal stopped him.

"We'd like to ask you a few questions about _this_ ," said Cal, pulling something out of his pocket.

Dylan glanced at it. "Viagra? No, that's not mine. No use to me." He started to walk away.

Cal thrust the box at Ethan and hurried after him. "No, I didn't mean those. I mean these." He waved the blister pack in front of Dylan's nose.

Dylan looked at it and sighed. "It fell out of David's pocket. He picked it up, but I needed his help. Max was loitering outside the cubicle so I gave him the blister pack and asked him to dispose of it."

Ethan had caught them up. "David?" he said slightly breathlessly. "David had the tramadol?"

"Yes," said Dylan. "If you've quite finished…"

"No, wait!" said Cal. "How do we know you're telling the truth? How do we know you're not trying to drop David in it?"

Dylan stopped walking. "All right. I stole the tramadol. I asked Charlie to look after it for me. I later got some of my own, finished the packet and dropped it on the cubicle floor. Happy now?"

Cal stared at Ethan in delight. "Ethan! We've got a confession!"

Ethan looked sympathetically at Cal. "I don't think that's a confession."

Cal nodded seriously. "I'm afraid I'm going to have to report this to Mrs Beauchamp, Dylan."

"Good," said Dylan. "Go and do that. I'll get on with my work."

Cal started to go after him, but Ethan stopped him. "No, Caleb."

"He's probably going to do a runner!"

"He didn't steal the tramadol," said Ethan.

"But he said he did! He confessed it!"

"Yes, but I don't think he was telling the truth," said Ethan.

Cal looked at his brother pityingly. "A false confession to theft isn't funny."

"I think Dylan just wants to put an end to this detective business," said Ethan.

Cal thought about it and shook his head. "No, Ethan. Trust me. It was a confession."

"Well, it's easy enough to find out," said Ethan. "All we need to do is check his earlier statement about David. If David says he gave the blister pack to Dylan and Dylan gave it to Max, then Dylan is in the clear."

" _Unless_ they're in it together and Dylan's faking an alibi," said Cal. "The thing is, Ethan, you can't be tried for the same crime twice. So if we go to Connie now and Dylan comes up with David as his alibi, Dylan is proved innocent, even though he did it. But because he's proved innocent, there's nothing we can do about it, even if we prove the truth later."

Ethan looked like he was trying not to smile. "Caleb. Firstly, in certain circumstances, you can be tried for the same crime twice if we find further incriminating evidence after the trial - though admittedly, it's open to question whether this would be considered a 'serious' drug crime. Secondly, we're not a court of law. We're just two doctors, _failing_ to do our job."

"Failing?" said Cal.

"We haven't treated any patients for a while, have we?" said Ethan.

"But we're doing the patients a _favour_ ," said Cal. "We're making sure the hospital is safe for tramadol users."

Ethan didn't look completely convinced by that.

Cal grabbed his arm and dragged him along. "And now, it's time to speak to David."

* * *

David was standing by the nurse's station, looking unduly tense as he read a patient's notes. Cal ignored the voice in his brain reminding him that David always looked tense and put it down as a sign of guilt.

"Dave, can we have a word, mate?" said Cal.

David closed the file and looked worried. "Yes. Of course."

"It's nothing to worry about," said Ethan reassuringly.

Cal looked at his brother in amazement. Since when was drug crime nothing to worry about? "It's about the blister pack you found and gave to Dylan."

"Dylan gave it to Max and asked him to throw it away," said David.

Cal looked at Ethan in triumph. Ethan looked confused, but it was so obvious to Cal. Any normal person when faced with that statement would have told him how the blister pack had come into his possession, but David had focused on what had happened to it afterwards.

Not that David's behaviour was always, strictly speaking, normal. David clearly had difficulties. But what if the reason for his unusual behaviour, his awkwardness around other people and his jumpiness was due to a drug addiction?

Cal conducted a swift visual examination.

As tramadol was no longer readily available, it seemed most likely that David was suffering from withdrawal symptoms. These included agitation and confusion, both of which were displayed by David on a daily basis. He also seemed confused at times and he certainly didn't give the impression of being a happy person, so it wasn't unlikely he was suffering from depression. David held himself awkwardly, as people sometimes did when suffering from gastrointestinal pain – another symptom of tramadol withdrawal.

Cal grabbed David's hand and squeezed it tightly. "Can you feel this, David?"

David looked more confused than ever. "Yes, I can feel it."

Cal released his hand, disappointed.

"It feels a bit numb now," said David.

Cal gave Ethan a triumphant look. "David, do you ever hear ringing in your ears?"

"Sometimes," said David.

"And do you ever feel like everyone in the hospital is out to get you?"

David looked a bit frightened. "I feel a bit like that now, Cal."

"And how's you digestion?" asked Cal. "Any diarrhoea?"

David looked very embarrassed.

"Okay. You don't have to answer that," said Cal. He patted David on the shoulder. "Don't worry, Dave. Everything's going to be okay."

David gave Cal another wary look and walked away.

Cal turned sadly to Ethan. "It's him, isn't it?"

"I don't know where you've got that idea!" said Ethan.

"Didn't you realise what I was asking about?" said Cal, a bit surprised.

"The withdrawal symptoms of tramadol, I assume. But the same symptoms can indicate other conditions."

"He had numbness in his extremities," said Cal.

Ethan did not look impressed. "So would I if you squeezed my hand that hard! I've had a lot of those symptoms recently, Cal, and I can assure you I'm not a tramadol addict. Besides, the person we're looking for might have found a new source of tramadol, in which case they'd be displaying signs of addiction, not withdrawal."

"He might be displaying signs of addiction too," said Cal. "I've noticed he doesn't eat very much for lunch and I've seen him drinking water, so he might have a dry mouth."

"I imagine you've seen the whole ED drinking water," said Ethan. "And not everyone has a large appetite."

"And once I was in the loos, doing my hair, and David went into a cubicle and didn't come out for ages," said Cal. "So he might have been constipated or feeling nauseous. I'll ask him."

"No, you will not!" Ethan's voice rose to a shout. He took a couple of breaths, then tried to speak calmly. "You have no reason to assume it's David. Five minutes ago, you were convinced it was Dylan!"

Cal tried not to feel embarrassed by his mistake. "We've… uncovered new evidence since then."

"No, Caleb, we have not uncovered anything!" said Ethan. "At least, nothing relating to the tramadol thief. All we've uncovered are various secrets about our colleagues that are really none of our business."

"The tramadol thief is our business though," said Cal. "And we need to tell Connie about David _now_."

Ethan's eyes burned with rage. "No, Cal, we don't! We need to forget about this. I don't suppose for a moment that you're right about David, but even if you are, do you really want to tell Mrs Beauchamp? For one thing, you know how she reacted when Elle told her Charlie had the tramadol. For another, what about David? Whether he's innocent or guilty, think of all the stress and unhappiness it's going to cause him. This is a man – a _friend_ – who is already working through serious problems. He needs to work through them in his own time, not be forced to confront them when he's still adapting to working here. Maybe this was fun at first, Cal, but we're playing with people's careers. Their lives!"

Cal looked at Ethan closely. "You think David did it, don't you?"

"I didn't say that," said Ethan.

"If you don't think that, how come you're going off on one now? Why not when we were talking to Dylan or Max or Elle or anyone else we've spoken to?"

There was emotion in Ethan's eyes. "Because it was talking to David that made me realise how much damage we could be doing. We're going around suspecting our friends of being drug addicts and thieves. What kind of friend does that?"

Cal was silenced, but only for a moment. "I get what you're saying, Ethan, but our friends are the reason we're doing this. We've got to clear Charlie's name – and we've got to clear everyone else's name too. No-one believes Charlie did it. Until the culprit is found, we're all in the frame. We've got to do this for the innocent people."

The fight seemed to go out of Ethan. He lowered his head and spoke almost in a whisper. "Okay, Cal."

Cal put his hands on Ethan's shoulders. "I know it's tough, Ethan, but we can deal with this. Okay?"

Ethan's voice was still almost inaudible. "Okay."


	13. Chapter 13

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you liked Dylan's confession - I thought maybe I'd have someone confessing for a joke, but I thought a confession from someone who doesn't joke would be more confusing for Cal and Ethan.

 **X-Sammii-X** , I'm glad you're a David fan! I think he's lovely too. He would never hurt anyone, but unusual people often do get suspected when something bad happens. If Richard hadn't been busy with other projects, I'm sure Cal would have given Charlie a lot of support. Cal might not have ruled Connie out completely... I think Ethan is trying to stop Cal from doing something he'll regret, but it must be annoying for Cal! Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , they are trying to be thorough anyway! I'm glad the serious undertones are still coming through. The brothers' personalities are really helping me to write this story because it seems natural for Cal to get caught up in the detective role (though he does take the situation seriously) while Ethan sees the reality. Thank you for your review.

 **Teeloganroryflan** , thank you for your review. I think you're right about Ethan not being into it. He wants to 'be more Cal', but as he's Ethan, he can't help seeing all the pitfalls. He's also struggling with his diagnosis, but I don't think that's been mentioned since Chapter 2 as I got distracted.

 **panicatcasualty123** , thank you for your review - it's lovely that you're enjoying it so much. This story actually started out as a serious story, so I'm not sure what happened! But I do like how it's turned out and I'm glad other people do too. I hope you'll continue to enjoy it.

 **ETWentHome** , I think Cal is a detective is a bit like Cal as a doctor in that he jumps to conclusions and acts on instinct a lot, whereas Ethan is a lot more careful. But as a doctor, Cal has his training and experience to help him. I think Charlie was suspended for a week on TV, but with Cal and Ethan on the case, I think the culprit could be found in 2-3 days. Thank you for your review.

* * *

"Er… guys?" said a voice behind them.

They turned to see Big Mac.

"I heard you're investigating the… the tramadol thief." Big Mac looked tired and unhappy.

Cal nodded. "Yeah, that's right." He wasn't particularly happy that the news was all over the hospital, but Jacob had obviously told everyone and there was nothing Cal could do about it.

Big Mac moved from one foot to the other. Then he stopped, an agonised expression on his face. "Cal. Ethan. There's something I need to tell you."

"You want to tell us who it is?" asked Cal.

Big Mac nodded without looking at them.

Cal could sympathise with his obvious guilt. He really wasn't looking forward to telling Connie that David had done it. The only reason he was even considering it was because an innocent man Cal really cared about was suffering as a result. "Mate, it's okay. Really. You don't have to say anything."

"I don't?" said Big Mac doubtfully.

"No," said Cal. "Ethan and I know who did it."

Big Mac sighed. "I thought you'd get there sooner or later. Process of elimination and all that."

Cal nodded. "And we have. There were a few red herrings, but we've found out the truth now." He smiled reassuringly. "But don't worry, Mac. It's going to be okay."

Hope came to Big Mac's face. " You're not going to tell Mrs Beauchamp, then?"

"We haven't quite decided," admitted Cal. "Obviously, we _should_ tell Mrs Beauchamp – for Charlie's sake if for no other reason - but this is obviously a complicated situation. This isn't just a matter of catching a thief or even reporting someone for misuse of medication. This is a mate who's going through serious problems. A mate who needs help far more than he needs a punishment."

"You don't think a punishment is deserved?" said Big Mac.

Cal shook his head. "I think the last few days would be punishment enough for everyone."

"So… you might keep quiet, then," said Big Mac.

"We might," confirmed Cal.

"Because if you do tell Mrs Beauchamp, she might not see it in quite the same light as you do."

Cal sighed. "I know. You never can tell with Connie. Sometimes she's really understanding and she's prepared to cover things up. When I was in that big car crash around New Year, there was a chance I was over the limit so Connie fixed things so the police couldn't breathalyse me. But other times, she feels she has no choice but to follow the rules."

Big Mac nodded and sighed too. "Like with Charlie."

"Yeah… like with Charlie," said Cal. "But Mrs Beauchamp didn't know the full story because Charlie refused to say anything except that he was helping out a mate – which is pretty ambiguous, you've got to admit. We don't know if he confiscated them or if he agreed to look after them."

"No. I suppose we don't," said Big Mac thoughtfully.

"But we know the full story now – a lot of it, anyway – and if Ethan and I do decide to tell Mrs Beauchamp, we are going to do our best to make sure she understands exactly what happened and sees the full picture," said Cal. "I mean, no-one would seriously want to hurt Charlie, but it's awful when you're in pain and especially in a physical job like this, when you're on your feet for most of it and having to lift patients and perform CPR, you can't get through the day without painkillers. Like Ethan today with his shoulder."

Ethan nodded without saying anything.

"And then, once you are addicted, what are you going to do except take more painkillers?" said Cal. "Stopping isn't that easy, especially when the result is likely to be more pain. It's not exactly a motivation to stop, is it?"

"I'm grateful that you understand, Cal," said Big Mac.

"We'll do everything we can for… well, you know who," said Cal discreetly. He patted Big Mac on the arm. "Ethan and I will think it over and have a chat tonight. By tomorrow, I'm sure we'll have a plan."

* * *

"So, back to work, Nibbles," said Cal.

"Okay," said Ethan softly.

Cal frowned. "Are you okay?"

"I was just thinking," said Ethan.

"Oh yeah? About what?"

Ethan sounded tired. "How do we know Big Mac was talking about David? He didn't actually mention a name."

"Who else would he be talking about?" said Cal. "He obviously knows who did it and we've proved it's David."

"We haven't really," said Ethan. "All we know is that David is displaying certain symptoms that could indicate tramadol withdrawal or tramadol addiction and that doesn't prove anything. And there are a few people we haven't spoken to properly. Mac himself, for one. Not to mention Mrs Beauchamp, Rita, the paramedics… and we can't really be sure it's not Louise or Jacob. Big Mac could have meant anyone. Considering how upset he is, it's probably most likely to be Noel."

Cal shook his head. "We know it's not Noel."

Ethan sighed heavily. "We don't know that, Cal. Just because you'd find viagra more embarrassing than a tramadol addiction, it doesn't mean Noel would feel the same way. Addictions can be very powerful – more powerful than embarrassment. And one reason why he might have taken the tramadol with him and left the viagra is because when you interrupted him, he was about to go somewhere quiet to take the tramadol. It's not something he could do sitting at his desk."

Cal groaned aloud. Ethan was right. Why did Ethan always have to be right? He wasn't even that into this detective business and he was still better at it than Cal. "Okay: we'll have a look at Noel's file and see if he's been prescribed tramadol."

Ethan moaned softly and put his head in his hands.

Cal looked at him in concern. "Are you okay?"

"Let's see: a colleague has been suspended for something that isn't his fault; my brother is dragging me round the hospital questioning all our friends;I have an incurable disease - and my shoulder really hurts! Oh, yes, I'm fine, Caleb."

Cal put his hands on Ethan's uninjured shoulder. "Maybe you should go home."

"And leave you to get yourself into even more trouble?"

"I'm not going to get into any trouble!" said Cal, hurt. "Anyway, I thought we'd have a break from detective work until we get home. It's not just about questioning suspects, you know. We need to use our brains and make deductions."

Ethan closed his eyes. "I can't wait."

"Then you can start thinking when you're at home," said Cal. "Go on. Get changed and I'll think of something to tell Mrs Beauchamp."

"I'm not going home," said Ethan tiredly. "I have patients to see." He demonstrated his eagerness for work by sinking into a chair – only to stand up again almost immediately. He felt in his pocket and pulled out the box of viagra. "Cal, can you take this, please? My patients need me."

A voice spoke. "I don't see why you'd think that, Dr Hardy."

Ethan stared at Connie in a panic and thrust the box behind his back.

"That would imply you actually had some patients to see," said Connie, "and I think you and I both know that's not the case."

"Ethan's... on his break," said Cal weakly. "We're both on our breaks. So naturally, we discharged all our patients first."

"Then I can only assume you won't be wanting a lunchbreak later, as you've been on your 'break' for over an hour." Connie turned to Ethan, holding out her hand. "The box, please, Dr Hardy."

"Box?" said Ethan unconvincingly. "What box?"

"I'm glad you're a doctor and not an actor, Dr Hardy." Connie reached behind Ethan and took the viagra box. "Viagra. Is this box yours or are you covering for your brother again?"

Ethan's breathing was audible. "I…"

Connie shook the box experimentally. It rattled. She opened it to find several loose tablets. "Interesting. I'd like an explanation, please, Dr Hardy."

"I... found it," said Ethan unconvincingly.

"You… found it," said Connie. She looked closely at one of the tablets. " _Where_ did you find it?"

"Um…" Ethan looked desperately at Cal.

Connie turned to Cal. "Or should I be asking you, Dr Knight? It always amazes me that whenever something goes wrong at the ED, you're usually mixed up in it somewhere."

Cal didn't think that was quite fair, but it didn't seem like a good moment to argue with Connie. "It's… Noel's."

"And you thought you'd borrow it?" said Connie.

Cal looked at the floor. "I thought Noel might be the tramadol thief so I… um… searched his desk."

"In other words, you searched someone's private property when you should have been working," said Connie.

"We wanted to clear Charlie's name," said Cal.

Connie's face softened slightly. "I can understand that, Cal. We all want that. But this isn't the time or the place and I'm sure Charlie wouldn't want the patients to suffer. Now, back to work. You can play detectives later." She left them alone.

"That's weird," said Ethan suddenly.

"What is? Have you just looked in a mirror?" said Cal.

Ethan didn't seem to hear. "Why would the box have loose tablets in? Most tablets come in a bottle or blister pack."

"Maybe he broke the bottle," said Cal.

"Maybe," said Ethan, but he didn't sound convinced. "Cal, if you hadn't taken the box without looking at it and you'd seen it was viagra, would you have taken it?"

"Of course not!" said Cal. "I was looking for tramadol, wasn't I?"

"Exactly," said Ethan. "If you have tablets you want to hide, it makes sense to disguise it as another kind of tablet. And what a better hiding place than in a box no-one is going to want to be seen handling?"


	14. Chapter 14

**XX-Sammii-XX** , I actually planned for Connie to go all ice-queen on them, but I started writing it and it didn't turn out that way. Connie really cares about Charlie too and I think she can tell this isn't about Cal getting out of doing any work. Yes, Big Mac was at least thinking about confessing! Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , I'm sorry Cal frustrated you... I'm sure Ethan would sympathise! I thought it might be interesting if Big Mac tried to confess and Cal was too caught up in his theories to notice. I love Connie's empathy too - I'm sure she'd love Cal and Ethan to clear Charlie's name, but it is still a hospital. Thank you for your review.

 **ETWentHome** , thank you for your review. Big Mac must be feeling so many things. It must be a relief in a way that Cal and Ethan seemed to understand his situation so well, but he knows they won't necessarily keep quiet. There will be at least one more useless path in the chapter after this one, but I hope it will be interesting.

 **westlife4ever80** , thank you for your reviews. I'm glad the story is getting more interesting. No, it definitely wouldn't have been Max! Needing viagra isn't funny, but Cal being caught with a box is a bit different! He is definitely getting much too caught up in it and Ethan is reluctantly being swept along as usual.

* * *

Cal knew Connie had her eye on him, so he was very careful for the rest of his shift. But when he found himself searching for a file belonging to a Miss Garbutt (he'd just about managed not to snigger when saying her name), it didn't seem completely ridiculous that he might accidentally take Noel Garcia's file and glance through quite a lot of it before realising his mistake.

He returned to the file to the shelf and just to be very thorough, he accidentally picked up Mercedes Christie's file when looking for one belonging to a Mr Christian.

He reported his findings to Ethan on the way home. "Mercedes is being monitored very closely for her baby's sake and it looks like she really has managed to kick the drug habit. So I think we can rule her out. Probably Noel too. He was on codeine after the attack, but probably not enough to get him this badly addicted - he'd have been given more tablets if he'd asked, but he didn't. And why would he switch from codeine, which he can buy in small quantities over the counter, to tramadol, which is only available on prescription?"

Ethan didn't answer.

"Of course, an addiction isn't impossible," said Cal. "And if there was tramadol in the flat - maybe Big Mac took it for his back, or Honey left some behind - Noel might have given it a try. They're both opiates so they might give him the same lift. But you'd have thought he'd go back to the codeine as that's so much easier to get hold of."

Ethan said nothing.

Cal glanced at him. Ethan's eyes were closed. "Are you okay?"

"I'm just tired," muttered Ethan. "I'm fine."

* * *

Cal tapped lightly on Ethan's door. "You all right in there, mate?"

Ethan didn't answer. Cal knocked again then opened the door. The room was dark, but there was enough light from the hall to tell Cal that Ethan was in bed.

Cal walked towards his bed, only to cry out as he tripped over something. He regained his balance and bent down to rub his foot. Ethan never usually left things lying in the middle of the floor, but maybe it was part of his plan to 'be more Cal'.

He moved across the rest of the floor a bit more carefully and sat down beside Ethan, resting a hand on his arm. "Are you okay?"

"Yes," whispered Ethan and sniffed.

"Why are you crying then?" said Cal.

"I'm not," whispered Ethan.

Cal switched Ethan's bedside light on. Ethan flinched away from the light, then quickly tried to scrub his tears away, but he wasn't quick enough. "Ethan. What's wrong?"

"I'm so tired," said Ethan. "Everything is so tiring. Detecting. Working. Being in pain. Being more Cal…"

"You don't have to be like me," said Cal. "You can be yourself. You're great as yourself."

"I'm not," said Ethan as a tear ran down his cheek.

"Of course you are," said Cal.

Ethan sniffed. "But everyone likes me more when I'm like you. I don't think anyone actually hated me, but I never quite felt part of the group. Now I do."

"They like you exactly the same amount as they did before," said Cal. "Which is a lot."

"But they ask me to go to the pub, now" said Ethan. "They actively seek out my company."

"That's probably because they think there's a good chance you'll want to go," said Cal. "If people didn't ask you as much before, it's because you usually said no. But we did still ask you and we were always happy when you came and had a drink with us."

Ethan wiped his eyes. "I know I should make the most of life and I do try. And I enjoy going to the pub. I even enjoy being drunk sometimes, as far as I remember. I like my salsa classes. I really do."

"You're actually kind of getting not completely awful at the salsa," said Cal.

Ethan laughed shakily. "I think I can take that as a compliment."

"But you should only do things if you really enjoy them," said Cal. "Life's too short to waste it doing things you… oh God, Ethan, I'm sorry. I shouldn't have said… I'm sorry."

"No, you're right," said Ethan as he fought back more tears. "You're right, Cal. Don't worry. You're right." He sniffled. "I'm just having trouble… coping. With everything."

"I know," said Cal unhappily. He stroked Ethan's hair a couple of times. "I meant to tell you earlier. I had a look online and there's a Huntington's support group quite near here. There's a meeting next weekend." Cal paused. "What do you think?"

He wasn't surprised to see doubt on Ethan's face. Even though Ethan wanted to go, that wasn't going to make it easy.

It wouldn't be easy for Cal either. He couldn't imagine anything worse than telling a group of people that Ethan had the gene while he'd been the lucky one. It would probably only take them all of five minutes to know that Ethan was the good guy and Cal had never got anything right in his life.

But that didn't matter. It wasn't about Cal.

"Next weekend?" said Ethan in a small voice.

"It doesn't have to be next weekend," said Cal quickly. "We can wait till you're ready. They have meetings once a month, but they also do outings and there's a helpline and lots of information. It looks really good."

Ethan's eyes were filling with tears again.

"Or we don't have to go at all," said Cal quickly.

"No. I'd like to. And thank you for looking it up for me. I just…" Ethan's tears began to fall. "It just makes it more real."

"I know," said Cal softly. He lay on the bed beside Ethan and put his arms around his brother. "I know, Ethan."

* * *

Cal was in the middle of breakfast the next morning when he suddenly groaned and put his head in his cereal bowl.

"Caleb, what are you doing?" said Ethan, who seemed more cheerful after a good cry and a good night's sleep.

"I don't know," said Cal. He'd forgotten the bowl was there. He lifted his head, trying to ignore the milk dripping from his hair. "I just thought of something. Max said Dylan acted scared of the blister packet. Why would that be?"

Ethan tried to muffle his laughter in his hands. "I'm sorry, Cal. I'm really sorry. But I think you need to go and wash your hair."

"All right, Nibbles. I will," said Cal with an attempt at dignity. "And when I get back, I want an answer to my question."

When Cal got back, Ethan had two answers. "My first idea is that Dylan was scared for David, because he suspected David of being the tramadol thief, but he didn't want him to get into trouble because he likes David and he knows he's unwell."

"It doesn't sound much like Dylan, but you could be right," admitted Cal. "He's been unwell too after all."

"The second idea is that maybe the blister pack upset his OCD in some way," said Ethan. "Where is it?"

Cal shrugged. "No idea."

"Never mind." Ethan took a blister pack from his own box of tramadol and handed it to Cal. "The tablets are in four rows of four."

"Sixteen?" said Cal blankly.

"Not sixteen so much, but Dylan doesn't like the number four," explained Ethan. "Usually, he's completely fine with it, but if you see something that used to scare you, there are circumstances when it throws you a little bit – perhaps if it's unexpected in some way. When you showed me that crab on the beach, I wasn't even a tiny bit scared because crabs on the beach were normal and I could tell you about to do something mean."

Cal was tempted to dispute the 'I wasn't even a tiny bit scared, but he waited to hear Ethan's point.

"But if you showed me a crab now, it might scare me a little bit because this isn't somewhere you'd expect to find a crab," said Ethan. "So being given something with four rows of four might throw Dylan a little bit."

Cal shook his head. "I don't know, Ethan – though thanks for the tip about crabs. I just don't think finding blister packets in a hospital is that unusual."

"I think it is," said Ethan. "We're very careful about health and safety. We'd pick up anything like this straight away because even though it's not likely to be a hazard, there is a chance a child might pick it up, thinking it was sweets."

Cal sighed. "I keep thinking I'm good at this, but every time I think we know who did it, you've got an explanation of why it can't be them."

"I'm not saying it _can't_ be them," said Ethan. "I'm just saying the evidence isn't as conclusive as you think it is. That's not our fault – sometimes conclusive evidence doesn't exist. But I don't want you to accuse someone and get yourself into trouble."

Cal smiled. "So, Nibbles does care about me?"

"I care about sparing myself the trouble of having to live with an unemployed brother who's going to be even less likely to remember to pay the rent," said Ethan.

Cal laughed. He wasn't convinced and he didn't think Ethan had meant him to be. "So, what are we going to do today? Carry on detecting or leave it?"

Ethan looked at him doubtfully. "You'd really be happy to leave it?"

"I saw how upset you were last night, Ethan. I don't want to make things worse."

Ethan contemplated this for a long time. "I was just really tired yesterday. I'm fine now."

"Sure?"

"I'm sure," said Ethan. "I think I just needed to sleep and release my emotions a bit. If you want to carry on, that's okay with me. I'll help all I can."

"Great!" said Cal in relief. "I really want to have a look at that book of Jacob's. Then I need an update on Louise's wrist and I'm going to make very tentative enquiries about whether Lily and Robyn are still using it. We also need to stalk Dylan and see if he's showing any more signs of OCD. How does that sound?"

"Absolutely terrifying," said Ethan.


	15. Chapter 15

**Tanith Panic** , thank you for your review. Dylan won't be stalked quite yet, but he's definitely on the list. I wouldn't say no to stalking Dylan! I think I remember the crab incident too, but my memories definitely don't tally with Ethan's - I don't remember anything about Ethan 'not being scared at all'.

 **X-Sammii-X** , I think it might be impossible for Cal to comfort Ethan too often and I didn't want to lose sight of the fact that Ethan was really struggling in the earlier chapters. I'm glad you liked Cal sticking his head in a bowl of cereal - I thought that might give Ethan another reason to smile! Thank you for your review.

 **ETWentHome** , I often read a brilliant chapter and write 'I really enjoyed that' and it seems wrong because I'm definitely not feeling joy! But I can hardly say I didn't enjoy it as that gives completely the wrong impression! I'm glad you like the way I wrote Ethan's feelings and that I stayed in character. Thank you for your review.

 **westlife4ever80** , thank you for your review. I don't want Ethan to become too much like Cal, but having a little bit of Cal's self-confidence might really help him. But he is going through a bit of a mood dip at the moment. Maybe once his mood lifts, his confidence will too? His brain is certainly working perfectly at the moment.

* * *

Jacob was sitting at the kitchen table, his laptop in front of him. "Hey, guys. How's it going? Do you know who did it yet?"

"We've got a few ideas," said Cal. "But I'm afraid we can't divulge any details at the present time."

Then he had to pat Ethan's back because his little brother was having a coughing fit. Either that or he was trying to disguise the fact he was laughing at Cal.

Jacob grinned. "Spoken like a proper detective. So, is there anything I can do to assist with enquiries?"

"We did kind of hear a rumour you're taking bets on who we're going to accuse," said Cal.

"And you think I'm doing that to distract you from my guilt?" said Jacob. He held out his arms. "Well, you got me. I confess. I planted the tablets in Charlie's locker. Now slap those handcuffs on haul me off to Connie."

Ethan gave a slight smile. "You're too late, Jacob. We've already had one false confession from Dylan."

The look of shock on Jacob's face was almost comical. "No way! _Dylan_ did a false confession? Are you completely sure that was false?"

"David confirmed his original story," said Cal.

"Right. I can't see David lying. But why would Dylan pretend to confess?"

"We think he had some idea that if we went to Connie with a false confession, we'd have to tell her what we were up to and Mrs Beauchamp would put a stop to it," said Cal.

"It's quite clever of him, really," said Ethan.

"But we were cleverer," said Cal smugly.

Under his breath, Ethan muttered: "One of us was, anyway."

Cal thought this was rather churlish of him. If he'd been the one who'd had the idea, he'd have been more than happy to let Ethan share the credit.

Well.. probably.

Jacob was looking thoughtful. "Now, I'm not going to argue with anything you're saying. But answer me this. Do you seriously think Connie has no idea what you're up to?"

"Why? Did she mention it over dinner?" said Ethan innocently.

"Over a big fat sausage, maybe?" suggested Cal.

Ethan kicked him in the lateral malleolus. "I'm so sorry, Cal. My foot slipped."

Cal rubbed his ankle. "As it's you, Nibbles, I might even believe you." He realised how that might have sounded and hastily put his hand on Ethan's shoulder. "Because you're so innocent, I mean. Not because I think you're getting symp… simply annoying. I just mean you're a complete innocent."

"I know what you meant," said Ethan softly. "It's okay."

Cal patted his shoulder and turned back to Jacob. "So, did Connie say anything to you?"

"Connie never says anything to me about anything," said Jacob with a sigh. "We haven't talked much lately."

"How come? Has she usually got her mouth full?" Cal cried out in pain. " _Ethan_! You really need to watch that foot of yours."

Jacob's smile was completely gone now. "Connie and I haven't been seeing each other for a while."

"I'm sorry to hear that, Jacob," said Ethan gently.

"Yeah, me too," said Cal.

"Thanks, guys." But Jacob wasn't down for long. "The reason I asked you about Connie is because I can't imagine that a full-scale detective investigation could be going on in her hospital without her noticing it."

"I think she does know," said Ethan. "I mean, she told us to 'play detectives later'. So she must know. But..." Something seemed to click in Ethan's mind. "...she didn't actually tell us to _stop_."

Cal sighed. Trust Ethan to be the clever one again. "So why hasn't she stopped us?"

"You're the detectives," said Jacob, leaning back and folding his arms. "You tell me."

Cal looked at Ethan. "Do you think, maybe she…" he began, hoping Ethan would be able to think of an ending for that sentence.

"…that she really wants to know who it is so she's turning a blind eye in the hope we can find out?" said Ethan.

"Exactly what I was thinking!" said Cal.

Ethan looked sceptical but said nothing.

Cal turned to Jacob. "Just out of interest, Jacob, could you show us this book of yours? I'd like to see who everyone's betting on."

"It's just a bit of fun," said Jacob. "It probably won't help you."

"It might," said Cal. "Is it possible for people to bet on themselves?"

"Of course!" said Jacob.

Cal nodded in satisfaction. "I think anyone who's bet on themselves can be ruled out. If they're guilty, they wouldn't draw attention to themselves like that."

"Unless it's a double-bluff because that's what they're expecting us to think," said Ethan.

Cal sighed. Ethan had an answer for everything and it wasn't fair. "Can't you show us anyway, Jacob?"

Jacob opened a file on his laptop. "Here you go. A few votes for Connie: that's just a joke, of course. No-one really thinks you'd dare accuse her. A couple for Dylan. A couple for me, but one of them's mine. David also voted for himself."

"Did anyone refuse to vote?" asked Cal, relieved he'd thought of something intelligent to ask.

Jacob had a look. "Dylan didn't vote. Neither did Lily, but I didn't really expect them to, to be honest. Oh, and Big Mac didn't seem too keen – said it wasn't right to make money out of Charlie's misfortune or something like that – but Noel talked him into it. But I'm not making money anyway. Whoever picks the right person will get a small prize, but the rest of the money is going to the children's ward."

Ethan smiled. "That's a really nice idea. Is it all right if I make a bet?"

"Well, I shouldn't let you, as you're the detectives," said Jacob. "I don't want you fixing it so you win."

"Oh, it's okay. I'm going to vote for someone we've already ruled out," said Ethan. "I'm going to vote for Louise."

"You're a braver man than I am," said Jacob. "Cal? You want to make a bet too?"

"Lily," said Cal, eager to prove that Ethan wasn't the only brave man in the family.

Jacob grinned. "Thanks, guys! And don't worry. You can trust me not to give Louise and Lily the good news."

* * *

"So, was that completely pointless?" asked Ethan once they'd left the staff room.

"Not at all!" said Cal, shocked. "We've got some more evidence against Noel _and_ David."

A doubtful look came to Ethan's face. "How can there be evidence against both of them? You don't think they're both addicted to tramadol?"

"Don't you think two addicts actually makes a lot of sense?" said Cal. "When it was just Noel, he got away with it. But when David arrived, a lot more was disappearing."

"But I thought we'd ruled Noel out," said Ethan. "You said he was on codeine, remember?"

Cal nodded. "I know we did, but I was thinking about Big Mac. First, he comes to see us to find out what we know and now we find out he didn't want to make a bet. He definitely knows something."

"But that doesn't mean he suspects Noel – it could mean that Big Mac's the guilty party," said Ethan. "And we haven't actually talked to him yet, not properly."

"But why would he hide tramadol in Noel's desk?" said Cal. "It's going to look odd if he has to go to Noel's desk every time he needs a tramadol hit. And he's risking getting his best mate into trouble."

Ethan considered. "That's a good point - though we don't know for sure that the tablets in the viagra box are tramadol."

"I suppose not," agreed Cal. "But I also think it might be David. He voted for himself. Now, maybe I'm talking rubbish-"

"You? Talk rubbish? Perish the thought!" said Ethan.

"-but I can't see David getting involved in gambling," said Cal. "It just doesn't seem like his sort of thing."

"Nor does drug addiction," pointed out Ethan.

Cal glared at him. "Stop being clever. And don't you even think about saying 'one of us has to be'."

"It hasn't even crossed my mind."

"It had better not do!" said Cal. "But what I mean is, I can't see David gambling for the fun of it. But if you're trying to cover something up, you might end up doing things you wouldn't usually do because you're overcompensating."

"Like when you broke that mug Mum – Matilda - gave me on my last birthday before she… got too ill to think about…" Ethan's voice quivered and he had to pause for a moment. "And you tried to cover up by putting the pieces in the sink, filling it with water and pretending you were washing up! That didn't fool me for a minute. I mean, Caleb Knight washing up?"

"I really am sorry about that," said Cal seriously. He still felt awful. If Ethan had got angry and shouted at Cal, it might not have been so bad, but Ethan had _cried_. Without even trying to hide it.

Ethan patted his arm. "I know you are. And you did a great job of sticking it back together, so please don't worry anymore."

Actually, Cal had got into a complete mess and Ethan had had to come and help him, but he knew Ethan appreciated the thought.

"What about Jacob?" said Ethan.

"I suppose there's no proof, but I just can't see it," said Cal. "He just seems so relaxed about the whole thing. Either he's innocent or he's a brilliant actor. Do you know if Jacob's done any acting?"

"I don't know about acting, but he hates public speaking," said Ethan. "I can't remember how it came about, but I told him I hated it and he said he was just the same. He doesn't mind being the centre of attention normally, but he hates being up on a stage with everyone staring at him."

"He probably hasn't done any acting then," said Cal. "Anyway, I've got a hunch it's not him – all the best detectives have hunches – so yeah. It's not Jacob."

"I don't suppose you have a hunch who _has_ done it?" said Ethan. "I realise that even great detectives can't have hunches on demand, but I think a hunch about who did do it would be far more useful."

Cal steered Ethan towards the naughty cupboard (Cal knew he'd never think of it as anything else now) and smiled. "My hunch is Noel. Everything points to it. But we need to speak to David first. He never actually told us where he got that blister pack from. A good detective never leaves things undone."

"You left your jeans undone this morning," Ethan couldn't resist reminding him. "If I hadn't told you…"

"Yes, all right," said Cal grumpily. He'd been hoping Ethan wouldn't mention that again. He opened the cupboard door and pushed Ethan inside. "Now send David one of those lovely, long texts of yours and tell him to meet us here at his earliest convenience."


	16. Chapter 16

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. It's quite fun writing Ethan winding Cal up! It's so often the other way around, though Ethan knows how to be irritating when he wants to be.

 **X-Sammii-X** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you liked Cal's puns about Jacob and Connie - I think Jacob would have enjoyed them too if he and Connie were together at this point. Ethan always has been more cautious than Cal, but I think they're a good team.

 **Is-there-somewhere-x** , I can imagine Cal and Jacob getting on really well, but you're right - we have hardly seen them together, though of course, we've hardly seen Cal! Maybe they'll be in an episode together soon. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you found it funny! I'm glad you think Cal deserved to have his ankle kicked - violence isn't usually funny, but I hoped this was one of the exceptions. I hope you enjoy this chapter too.

 **ETWentHome** , they are going to kick themselves when they find out who it is, especially as Big Mac probably came to confess. Ethan is going to do a lot of kicking in this story: first Cal, then himself! It's sad, but unusual people like David will often arouse suspicion in cases like this. Thank you for your review.

* * *

David entered the cupboard nervously. Perhaps he was guilty. Perhaps he'd heard the rumours about what Ethan was using the cupboard for.

But perhaps he was just nervous.

"We'd just like to ask you a couple more questions about the blister pack you found yesterday," said Cal.

David's gaze flickered from Cal to Ethan and back again. "Okay."

"It's all right. There's absolutely no need to worry," said Ethan soothingly – if not entirely truthfully. "We're speaking to everyone and we'd like to trace the blister pack to its original source if we can. We're not accusing you of anything."

 _Not yet, anyway_ , thought Cal.

"You said you gave it to Dylan," said Cal. "But how did you come to get hold of it?"

David spoke without looking at either of them. "It was mine. I'd just finished the packet."

Cal shot Ethan a triumphant glance.

Ethan ignored him. "How long have you been on tramadol, David?" he asked gently.

"A couple of years," said David. With an effort, he focused his gaze on Ethan. "I only take it when I need it and I try not to take it unless the pain is really bad. But nursing can be quite physical."

Ethan nodded encouragingly. "Yes, it's exactly the same if you're a doctor. If you have an old injury or any kind of chronic pain condition, then you're bound to feel it when you're working in a hospital. Especially if you've had a bit of a break and you're out of the swing of things."

"I had the packet in my hand. I was looking for a bin, but Dylan saw me and reminded me that my break was over," said David. "I hadn't realised."

"It's easy to lose track of time sometimes," said Ethan. "Don't worry about that." Almost casually, he asked: "How often did you say you took them?"

"I didn't take any for ages before I came back here," said David. He stood tensely and he seemed to be looking at Ethan's nose rather than into his eyes. "But when I came back, I started to have pain. I don't take it every day, but when it's bad, I take one in the morning and one in the afternoon." Anxiety filled his face. "Not enough to be addicted."

"I'm not sure about that," said Cal, and received a sharp glance from Ethan.

"Caleb, you can't possibly know if David is addicted or not," said Ethan.

Fear filled David's eyes. "It wasn't me who stole the tablets, Ethan."

"We're not saying it was," said Ethan gently.

David backed away a little. "But if… there's evidence against me…"

"There's no evidence against you," said Ethan. He put his hand on David's shoulder. "It really is all right."

Cal thought that was going a bit far. "We can't be sure about that, Ethan."

"I'm sure," said Ethan. "All we know is that David takes tramadol – but so do half the ED, so that proves nothing. Louise, Lily and Robyn all take tramadol – and so do I. The fact you have a tramadol prescription is probably a point in your favour if anything, David – anyone who has a prescription doesn't need to steal it."

"But they will think it was me," said David. "I'm not… I'm not normal. They always suspect people like me."

"I'm sure no-one suspects you," said Ethan. "And if there is such a thing as normality, I certainly don't fall into that category."

"Not even slightly!" said Cal.

"And I wouldn't want to," said Ethan firmly. He patted David's shoulder. "I really like you, David. I hope that, in time, you will become more comfortable here, but I hope you never change. You're kind, thoughtful and empathic and I could name quite an few people here who could take a leaf out of your book. You always seem to know just how to comfort an anxious patient and I admire you for that."

David lifted his head slowly until his eyes met Ethan's. "Thank you." It was a simple reply, but the words were invested with deep feeling.

"I'm not sure I did anything, but if I did help in some way, I'm glad," said Ethan. "And if you want to talk more now, or if you'd like to talk to me another time, you're always welcome to."

David was silent for a moment. "I… I would like to go back to work now, Ethan. But perhaps…"

"Whenever you like," said Ethan. "My cupboard door is always open."

"I…" David looked at Ethan, but no words came.

Ethan smiled as though he understood.

David smiled too and gave Ethan a hug.

Cal was busy enjoying Ethan's slightly shocked face when the door opened.

"Not another one, Dr Hardy!" sighed Connie. "I'm almost beginning to believe the rumours about you and this cupboard. I know you want to be more like your brother – though why you'd want that is beyond me – but please do it on your own time in future."

"I'm sorry, Mrs Beauchamp," said Ethan, flustered.

"Dr Hardy was… reassuring me," said David.

Connie eyed him dispassionately. "Are you feeling reassured now, Staff Nurse Hide?"

"Yes, thank you, Mrs Beauchamp."

"Then perhaps you'd let Dr Hardy get on with some work."

* * *

"So, what do you think?" asked Cal, once they were out of earshot of David and Connie.

"I'm starting to think I don't need to worry about my symptoms – Mrs Beauchamp will give me a cardiac arrest long before they start to show."

Cal put his arm around him. It was good to see Ethan joking about it, but all the same, he knew his brother was putting on a brave face. He also loved the way that Ethan had referred to a more medically-correct cardiac arrest rather than the idiomatic heart attack. "Do you think David did it?"

"Oh, goodness me, no!" said Ethan. "He has problems, but he's a good man. He would never let Charlie be punished for something he'd done."

"Not even if he couldn't find the words to say so?" said Cal.

"He always says what really needs to be said," said Ethan.

Cal sighed. "Okay, we'll leave David for now and go stalk Dylan."

"But David confirmed Dylan's story," said Ethan.

"Yeah, if David's telling the truth, then the blister pack is a red herring," said Cal. "But there's still a tramadol thief running around and don't you think it's a bit odd that Dylan actually took the packet away from David? He could easily have told David to throw it away later. But Dylan wanted a closer look – maybe because he was hoping there was a tablet left."

Ethan nodded thoughtfully. "You've got a point there."

Cal was shocked. "Are you serious? You can't think of any reason why I could be wrong?"

"Oh, yes. I can think of lots of reasons why you might be wrong," said Ethan. "Dylan might have wanted to look and see what kind of tablets they were – perhaps because he was suspicious. Or he might have wanted David to get to work on something quickly – Dylan can be just a little impatient sometimes. Or he might have thought they belonged to the patient. Or it might have been quicker to take the packet from David and give it to Max than to ask David to do it. But you could also be right."

"Yes!" shouted Cal, punching the air. "Nibbles said I could be right!" He grabbed Ethan by the hands and made him salsa up and down the corridors. "Hey, you're pretty good, Nibbles!" He bent Ethan over backwards.

Ethan screamed. "My shoulder, Cal! My shoulder!"

Cal hurriedly restored Ethan to an upright position. Ethan looked very white and he had tears in his eyes. "Sorry, Ethan. I forgot. Come on. I'll take you to the staff room and get you a tramadol and a cup of tea."

* * *

Cal put Ethan's tea down beside the sofa and looked at his brother worriedly. "You really don't look any better."

"What do you expect when you nearly pull my arm off?" said Ethan.

Cal reached out to rub Ethan's arm. Just in time, he remembered it was the injured one and decided the other one might be safer. "I'm sorry."

"Please don't worry about it," said Ethan. "I know you didn't mean to hurt me."

"I never do, you know," said Cal softly.

Ethan smiled. "I know. You'd better get back to work."

"I am working!" said Cal defensively. "I'm treating you for a shoulder injury. I really should send you for x-ray, you know."

"It's just a clavicle contusion," said Ethan. "You did make a physical examination and there are no signs of a fracture."

Cal frowned. "Even so…"

"I'll be fine," said Ethan.

"Okay, but I'm going to get you some ice and then I think we should put it in a sling," said Cal. "That should help ease the pain and it'll stop idiots like me from forgetting you're injured and grabbing hold of you."

Ethan looked like he was about to argue, but then he sighed. "Maybe you're right. It is quite painful."

"I'm not at all sure I shouldn't send you home," said Cal anxiously. "You probably couldn't even take your stethoscope off without making yourself cry."

Ethan glared at him. "I don't know where you'd get that idea."

"I don't know: maybe the fact you couldn't dance a salsa without crying?"

"I was not crying, Caleb!" said Ethan huffily. "I just had a few tears of pain, that's all. And I'm perfectly capable of removing my own stethoscope, I can assure you." He grabbed hold of his stethoscope, yanking it from around his neck. "Oh! Oh, Cal!" Ethan's eyes filled with tears. "Cal, it hurts!"

Cal put his arm around him carefully. "It's okay, Ethan. You're okay. Just breathe for me… that's right. The pain will go off in a minute."

"I feel sick," whimpered Ethan. He sniffed. "I'm not crying though."

"Of course not. Never crossed my mind." Cal brought him a tissue and a bowl. "As you're completely all right, do you mind if I leave you alone while I get you a sling and sort out some ice?"

"I… I think you should keep me under observation till I feel a bit less sick," said Ethan.

Cal didn't look overly enthusiastic, but then he smiled and patted Ethan's knee. "I'm not going anywhere, Nibbles."

"Not even to stalk Dylan?"

"No… I only have one guy on my mind at the moment."


	17. Chapter 17

**X-Sammii-X** , thank you for your review. David is really lovely and I can imagine Ethan being a big support, but I'm not sure they've even spoken n the show! I can imagine Cal celebrating if Ethan ever said he was right, though it would depend on the situation. I'm glad you liked so many different parts of the chapter.

 **Tanith Panic** , I couldn't bear for Cal and Ethan to be mean to David! They might need a similar approach with Dylan, but let's see how they do. I doubt anyone told Connie that Ethan was being 'more Cal', but I'm sure she knows everything! I love it when Cal comforts Ethan. He needs to do it in every episode! Thank you for your review.

 **CBloom2** , thank you for your review. I would love to see a scene where Ethan works with David, though I am a little bit scared that Ethan's new attitude might make him less sensitive. The old Ethan would have been so supportive. I love it when Cal tries to be there for Ethan. It's just a shame Ethan often pushes him away.

 **Panicatcasualty123** , I'm sorry the detective work is complicated. It's difficult trying to be clear when Cal and Ethan are so confused about everything! I do take your point though, so I've tried to give Cal and Ethan a new approach in this chapter.. Thank you for your review - I really am happy you're enjoying this despite all the confusion.

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , yes, Ethan is definitely the only guy on Cal's mind now! I'm glad you like the way Ethan reassured David. Poor David has seemed a bit short of support since he's been on the show, though he's doing very well. I'm sure he'd support Ethan too if he had the chance. Thank you for your review.

 **westlife4ever80** , I think you'd be very good at stalking Dylan! You wouldn't take your eyes off him for a minute. David is lovely - I hope he has a big episode where we find out more about him. It was intriguing how upset he was over the girl who died a few weeks ago. I thought for a minute that he knew her! Thank you for your review.

 _Thank you to **Panicatcasualty123** for the favourite._

* * *

Cal tied Ethan's sling for him and examined his handiwork. "How does that feel?"

"It feels good," said Ethan gratefully. "Thank you. I'm sorry for making such a fuss."

"Hey, it's not as much fuss as I made when I stubbed my toe on my beer bottle last week," said Cal.

Ethan smiled. "True."

"Now, you probably shouldn't do any actual work, but there's no reason why you shouldn't help me stalk Dylan," said Cal.

"I can't wait," said Ethan.

Cal smiled approvingly. "That's the right attitude, Ethan!" His voice became serious. "I'm going to get Charlie cleared if it's the last thing I do."

"I just hope it's not the last thing you do at Holby City Hospital," said Ethan.

Cal looked at him in confusion. "What are you going on about now? Never mind. You're probably high on tramadol. Come on: let's go and find Dylan."

Finding Dylan proved much easier than they were expecting. The consultant was leaning against a wall near the staff room and was counting with his eyes closed. "25, 26, 27, 29, 30, 31, 33-"

"Mate, you missed out thirty-two," said Cal.

Dylan opened his eyes. "I meant to miss out thirty-two."

"Why?" said Cal. "What are you counting for anyway?"

"I wouldn't expect you to understand," said Dylan.

Ethan stepped forward and moved closer to Dylan. "We might be able to understand."

Dylan looked at Ethan for a moment. "What's wrong with your arm?"

"Clavicle contusion," said Ethan. His voice was very gentle. "What's wrong, Dylan?"

"Did I say something was wrong?"

Cal couldn't hold back a slight snort. "People don't usually stand around counting and missing out half the numbers unless there's something wrong."

Ethan gave him a warning look before turning back to Dylan. "Has something happened?"

For a while, it looked like Dylan might not answer. Then he nodded.

"Let me guess," said Cal. "You're in pain so you've prescribed yourself tra-"

"Caleb, this isn't helping!" hissed Ethan. He spoke to Dylan again. "What happened, Dylan?"

"A patient died," said Dylan in a low voice. "At four minutes past four. In Bay 4. She was born on 4th April 2004. She was a quadruplet. I know it shouldn't matter."

"Of course it matters," said Ethan. "It's a terrible thing to happen anyway, but when patterns jump out at you like that, it can be difficult to ignore them. So you were counting without the multiples of four?"

Cal looked at Ethan in amazement. Trust Ethan to notice that.

Dylan nodded. "I thought it might make me safe. I do know it's stupid."

"It's not stupid to want to feel safe," said Ethan. "If something terrible occurs, you want to prevent it from happening again. You just want to do _something_ … it's horrible to be doing nothing."

"But Dylan is doing nothing," Cal couldn't help saying.

Ethan glared at him. "Of course he's not doing nothing. He's making himself feel safe. Sometimes the smallest, most insignificant things can really help – and that makes them worth doing."

"It's… it's not been an easy time," said Dylan.

Ethan nodded. "I'm sure it hasn't. It can be difficult coping with relatives."

"Hey! I am still here!" said Cal.

Ethan gave a slight smile. "I really meant parents, though brothers certainly have their moments."

Dylan said nothing.

Cal became serious. "Parents can be difficult. They do bad things, just like us, but because they're your parents, it's harder to forgive them. Parents are meant to be perfect, right? But not everything is always their fault."

Dylan's face was blank. "I don't wish to discuss my family with you."

"I was talking about _my_ family," said Cal. "My birth mother. It was tough meeting her. Tough accepting what she had to say. She made mistakes. I made mistakes. Other people made mistakes. We had to work through all that, but in the end, I loved her. I would have done anything for her."

Ethan turned away.

"Don't push them away," said Cal. "You never know his much time you're going to have – and you're going to miss them when they're gone."

"I've had more than enough time with my father for several lifetimes," said Dylan.

"Sometimes it's like that," said Cal sympathetically. "Not all parents are good people. But please don't push your little sister away. I let my d… I let Matilda go and I've always regretted it. I miss her so much. I won't get to see her grow up; I won't get to hear her say her first word. I won't see that look in her eyes again that told me I was her daddy and no-one else was. Because someone else is her daddy now."

"I'm not her father," said Dylan. "Quite frankly, she'd be better off without one."

"Then she needs her brother even more," said Cal. He half-glanced at Ethan. "I need my brother every day."

Dylan shook her head. "I don't wish to discuss it."

"Okay." Cal looked at Ethan again. He reached out and touched his arm. "You okay, Nib- Ethan?"

Ethan had taken his glasses off. He looked like he was wiping his eyes, but when he turned to look at Cal, his eyes were dry. "I'm fine." He put his glasses back on and turned to Dylan. "You don't have to talk to us. It really is none of our business. But just so you know, you _can_."

"Yeah. Like, for example, if you want to tell us about any medications to lift your mood," said Cal, "like a narcotic; like, I don't know, for example, _tramadol_ …"

Dylan sighed. "You two don't give up, do you?"

"It is quite important to us to get Charlie off the hook," said Cal.

"Well, it's not me," said Dylan. "I honestly have enough problems." He sighed. "Okay. What have you done so far?"

"We've questioned people," said Cal. "Found out if they were on tramadol. That sort of thing. Made up a list of suspects. Ruled people out. And… well, put them back on the list again. We keep finding new evidence. It's confusing."

"If that's the way you're doing it, then yes, it is," said Dylan. "The first thing you should have done was to establish opportunity."

"Everyone had the opportunity!" said Cal.

Dylan shook his head. "No. They didn't. Only the people who were in the hospital when the tramadol was stolen from the patient had the opportunity. So you need to find out the date and approximate time of the theft and check the rotas to see who was working. And assuming this theft is related to the tramadol going missing from the dispensary (though it would be more difficult to establish opportunity for that theft as we can't be sure exactly when it disappeared), I would say that only the doctors, nurses and HCAs are likely suspects. Paramedics, cleaners, porters and admin staff would immediately be noticed and questioned."

Ethan's face lit up. "That's brilliant, Dylan! We didn't think of doing that."

"That much is clear," said Dylan drily.

"But what if someone came in when they weren't on the rota?" said Cal. "Like if they wanted some tramadol from the hospital so they came in especially to get it?"

"What sort of crime do you think this was?" said Dylan. "Was it premeditated or not?"

Cal shrugged. "I don't know."

"It wasn't premeditated," said Ethan. "They couldn't have known that someone who was on tramadol would visit the hospital on that day, announce to several people that she was taking it, and then leave the tablets lying around."

"But what if they came on the off chance of getting it some other way?" said Cal.

"They wouldn't take the risk," said Ethan with certainty. "If someone who isn't on shift is hanging round the hospital, someone's going to notice. Then, if tramadol is found to have gone missing, suspicion could fall on anyone who wasn't supposed to be there. Who comes into work for fun?"

"You have, on occasion," said Cal.

"Only when invited," said Ethan with a smile. "The theft was committed by somebody who was meant to be in the hospital at that time. So, as Dylan says, all we need to do is fine out the time of the theft, check the rota, and then anyone who wasn't there really can be ruled out."

Cal was slightly annoyed. It was bad enough Ethan knowing everything when it was just the two of them, but showing himup in front of Dylan? It wasn't right. "What if someone was called in at the last minute?"

"There would still be a record of it," said Ethan. "There's always a record of everyone who's working in case of an evacuation."

Cal couldn't resist. "Like if someone _evacuates_ onto the toilet seat and no-one will admit who did it?"

"I'm not even going to respond to that," said Ethan.

"Okay, I'll be serious," said Cal. This was important, after all. "So we get the list. Then what?"

Dylan looked at the ceiling. "Do I really need to explain that too? All right. What do we know about the thief?"

"That they're on tramadol," said Cal.

"That they're addicted to tramadol," said Ethan.

Cal shrugged. "Same thing."

"Not exactly," said Dylan. "What can you tell me about the tramadol history of the thief?"

"That they've been taking tramadol long enough to be addicted to it," said Cal. "And that they were first prescribed before the theft took place."

"Yes, that's true enough," said Dylan. "But what else?"

Ethan actually raised his hand like he was at school. "The thief was probably prescribed tramadol a short while ago. They took it for a long enough time to become addicted. But then the prescription was stopped and their attempts to take tramadol from the dispensary were also foiled. We can't rule out anyone who's recently been given a new prescription – or anyone who takes a monthly prescription but could have run out in the middle of the month and stolen tramadol to tide them over - but we should focus our efforts on people that have recently had their prescriptions stopped. We could find out this information from the files."

"Finally!" said Dylan. "Maybe there is a point in resitting your FCEM after all. And so, to sum up briefly, who are we looking for? Cal?"

Cal rolled his eyes. "Um… the tramadol thief. Obviously."

Dylan sighed. "Ethan?"

"Someone who was working on the day the tablets were stolen from the patient and who was prescribed a large amount of tramadol in the last few months," said Ethan. "This person is probably - though not definitely - _not_ taking tramadol now."

"There you are," said Dylan. "Easy."


	18. Chapter 18

**Panicatcasualty123** , I'm glad you're enjoying the banter - I love that side of Cal and Ethan's relationship, though I do like almost every side to their relationship! I hope they'll be in a lot more episodes together in the new series. I think they might be quite shocked when they find out the truth! Thank you for your review.

 **ETWentHome** , I agree that Dylan isn't stupid - a lot of people would dismiss it as stupid, but I'm sure those people have their own ways of getting through difficult situations. I thought Cal and Ethan needed a more methodical approach, but I couldn't see them thinking of it without help! Thank you for your review.

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. Ethan is suffering quite a lot in this story - though that happens quite a lot with my stories! I hope it will give him a bit of a boost if he can work out who the thief is - though it might just be upsetting. It's sad to find out someone you like and respect is really struggling.

 **westlife4ever80** , thank you for your review. Dylan really seems to like working out what's wrong with his patients, so I thought he might be able to point Cal and Ethan in a slightly less vague direction. I love it when Cal's sarcastic so it's good to know I'm getting that side of his character across.

 **X-Sammii-X** , I didn't think of getting any other doctors involved, but I do like the idea. Elle might prefer to stay well out of it this time, but Lily seems to like solving mysteries, so perhaps I could bring her into it, though I'm not sure how. Dylan probably was very upset - at least Ethan was kind. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , thank you for your review. As it happens, the episode in question featured every cast member, so checking the rota didn't help at all! It is sad about the quadruplet - I feel a bit guilty for brushing someone's tragedy aside, but that's what a doctor would have to do in order to carry on with their job.

* * *

"No, Cal," said Ethan, as he struggled to match his big brother's longer strides. "Trust me. This is _not_ a good idea."

"You heard Dylan," said Cal. "We need evidence and he's right. We were going about it the wrong way. We've already narrowed down the list by getting rid of the people who weren't working. Now we just have to find out who used to be on tramadol and we could have our man. Or woman."

"And what if we get caught?" said Ethan.

"We're doctors," said Cal. "We're allowed to look at files. Just collect the files on the doctors like I told you and take them to the cupboard." Cal had decided Ethan should collect fewer files as he only had one working arm. "I'll do the nurses and HCAs… though I have to say I've done a fair few of them already!"

Ethan looked disgusted.

"Listen, Ethan, if you want to be 'more Cal', you need to develop your sense of humour."

"In that case, I found your tasteless joke absolutely hilarious," said Ethan. "I can't wait for the next one."

"If anyone asks what we're doing, which they won't, we're writing up patient notes," said Cal. "Then we go to the naughty cupboard and do our thing."

"I think I like the sound of it even less when you put it like that," said Ethan.

"Well, not… _that_ thing," said Cal. "I'll leave that to you. I prefer a classier venue, like my car."

Ethan made a face. "And if I don't go and get the files?"

"Then I'll collect all the files myself, drop them everywhere, and then we'll never find out who did it and Charlie will lose his job!"

"Okay, Cal. I'll help you."

* * *

It was a longer list than Cal had hoped for, but it was still an improvement.

Cal's list said: BM, JM, LT, q DH.

Ethan's list said: _Chao, Lily (possible); Knight, Caleb_

"Hey!" said Cal. "What am I doing on there?"

"You were prescribed tramadol in February," said Ethan.

"When was I prescribed tramadol?" said Cal, slightly offended. "And how come you're not on there?"

"I'm not on there because I wasn't prescribed tramadol until after the theft. And you…" Ethan looked away. "You were prescribed tramadol when you dislocated your shoulder helping… helping Mum."

Cal's anger drained away. He put his hand on Ethan's arm.

Ethan's breathing gradually steadied. He looked up at Cal. "Sorry. I'm all right now."

Cal patted his arm. "It's okay. I get like that too. And you're right to put me on the list. We need to be objective."

"But I know you didn't do it," said Ethan quietly, his eyes holding Cal's.

It was Cal's turn to get emotional. It wasn't so long ago that Ethan thought him capable of everything bad or criminal.

"So I'm crossing you off the list," said Ethan. He picked up a pen and swiped through Cal's name. He looked at Cal again. Cal put his hand over Ethan's.

The brothers shared a moment, just looking at one another. Enjoying the closeness that had crept up on them so gradually, they hadn't noticed it, but couldn't be more obvious now.

Ethan looked at Cal's list again. "Couldn't you at least have written their first names, Cal? I've got no idea who these people are."

Cal wasn't about to admit it to Ethan, but it took him a few seconds to work it out. "Big Mac, Jacob Masters, Louise Tyler and David Hide. Q means query because he's still on tramadol. So it's probably not him or Lily."

Pain came into Ethan's eyes. "I feel terrible for saying this, but I suppose - if we're discounting David - Jacob is the one we know least well."

Cal chewed his lip. "Not that I'm scared or anything, but I _really_ don't fancy going to see Connie and telling her her ex did it."

"It would be worse if they were still together," pointed out Ethan.

Cal had to agree there. He ran his finger down his list. "I think Louise seems most likely. I mean, she is quite hot. I miss those skirts she used to wear when she was a receptionist. Scrubs just don't flatter amazing legs. Now Zoe's gone, all we've got is Lily and Connie and they mostly wear trousers." He saw the impatient look on Ethan's face. "Okay. Not relevant. But Louise… she's not the nicest person in the ED."

"Drug addiction can happen to anyone," Ethan reminded him. "Especially with prescription painkillers."

"So what do we do?" said Cal. "Question them all again?"

Ethan considered. "I think Dylan would suggest something a bit more methodical."

"Like what?"

"Like listing the pros and cons," said Ethan. "So, Big Mac." He looked helplessly at Cal. "Pros?"

"Charlie's words suggested an older person," said Cal. "Mac was obviously worried about how much we knew and seemed relieved when we said we wouldn't necessarily report the culprit. He was quite matey with Mercedes. He was prescribed tramadol for longer than Jacob and Louise."

"Cons: We can't be sure your interpretation of Charlie's words is correct," said Ethan. "We don't know he was worried for his own sake. Being friends with a drug addict doesn't mean you're one too. Not everyone on a long-term prescription becomes addicted. And although addiction is very powerful and can alter your behaviour dramatically, he and Charlie have been friends for a long time."

"Long enough for Charlie to want to cover for him?" said Cal.

"Yes, but possibly too long for Mac to let him," said Ethan.

Cal couldn't argue with any of that. "Okay. Jacob. Pros: He was on tramadol twice. He seems to be trying his hardest to make everyone laugh at us – that could be an attempt to make us give up investigating. He's an older person. We haven't known him as long as Mac and Louise. He does tend to do his own thing and ignore the rules. He's been down about Connie and might have wanted something to give him a lift. And I'm not sure he loves, I mean, _admires_ Charlie quite like we do."

"Cons: Jacob's reaction to our investigations is in keeping with his character," said Ethan. "Again, I have reservations about your interpretation of Charlie's words. There were more than six months between Jacob's two injuries, so I think we can discount the first one. A painkiller addiction could happen to anyone so the length of time we've known Jacob isn't relevant. Jacob does flout the rules and he even breaks the law, but that doesn't mean he'd be more likely to fall prey to addiction. A lot of people are down when relationships end, but most don't turn to painkillers – and even if Jacob dislikes Charlie, that doesn't mean he'd want Charlie to be punished for something he did."

"Okay, so let's do Louise," said Cal. He noticed what he'd unintentionally said, but he didn't smile. Suddenly, the situation seemed too serious for that. "Pros: We know she's in pain so she has genuine need of tramadol. Her first prescription of tramadol was the most recent – just two and a half months ago. She doesn't seem to care too much about other people."

"Cons: She's completely open about being in pain," said Ethan. "An addict might be more likely to hide it. She could have asked for tramadol without arousing suspicion, but she didn't ask for it. We can't assume that just because Louise can be… sharp, she would be happy to let Charlie be punished for something she did. Charlie's words _might_ suggest someone older than Louise."

Cal sighed. "I suppose we'd better do the other two. So, David. Pros: He's been taking tramadol for the longest amount of time and he hasn't been in the ED for long – the first tramadol theft could have coincided with his arrival. He was displaying possible signs of withdrawal and addiction."

"Cons," said Ethan. "The relatively small dosage suggests not taking it regularly enough to become addicted. His symptoms could suggest a lot of things. And he's probably young from Charlie's point of view."

"And finally, Lily," said Cal. "She's been on tramadol for more than a year and the way she treated Alicia could have been because of drug withdrawal."

"Cons: Lily is only prescribed a very small dosage," said Ethan. "The way she treated Alicia can also be explained by her distress over the death of her father."

Cal felt a surge of empathy. He knew what it was like to lose a parent.

"Additionally, like David, Lily was taking tramadol the whole time," said Ethan. "Though as she's prescribed a small quantity, it is possible she - or David - ran out."

Cal sighed. "It's not easy, is it? We could say David because he's been on it for longest, but I think Dylan's right: it's more likely to be someone whose prescription has ended; someone who's desperate. Mac was on tramadol for much longer than Louise and Jacob, so you could say he had the biggest chance of becoming addicted. But if he used his tablets sensibly and one of the others didn't..."

"Perhaps looking at when the prescriptions ended might be more helpful," suggested Ethan. "If one of them was forced to stop taking it shortly before the time when the first lot of tramadol went missing.."

Cal quickly looked through the files. "Mac, Jacob and Louise all got their last prescription at about the same time – two months ago."

"So that's inconclusive too," said Ethan helplessly. "The evidence probably points to Mac if anyone as he's been taking it the longest of the three and he does seem the most upset, but you could make the same argument for David. Or you could argue that if Mac was going to become addicted, it would have happened months ago and therefore the evidence points to Louise."

Cal sighed. "I suppose all we can do now is question them." An idea that had once filled him with delight seemed to have lost all its joy now there were just five or more likely three names to consider. "It just seems so real now."

Ethan nodded. "I know. But we've got three choices, Cal. We can forget about this and trust the truth comes to light eventually."

"We can't do that!" said Cal at once. "What about Charlie?"

"Or we can question the suspects and try to narrow things down a bit more," said Ethan. "Or… we could take the list to Mrs Beauchamp and leave it in her capable hands."

Cal didn't like the idea of admitting defeat at the last hurdle. But neither did he like the idea of cross-examining his friends and knowing that at any moment, he might find out something about them that would change his view of them forever. Anyone could become addicted to painkillers – but this person as also letting Charlie take the blame. "How about we go and see Connie with the list and ask for her thoughts?"

To his relief, Ethan seized on that idea gratefully. "Yes. Let's do that. Mrs Beauchamp won't be swayed by personal opinion as we're in danger of being and it will be good to have another person's point of view."


	19. Chapter 19

**westlife4ever80** , thank you for your review. They are getting very close! They've narrowed things down a lot, but there will be a few more twists and turns before they get down to the last person.

 **Tanith Panic** , I suppose going to Connie is a bit of a risk. I didn't really think of that. I love prissy Ethan too! Some people might be annoying, but Ethan is just adorable. Thank you for your review.

* * *

Cal grabbed Ethan's arm and dragged him back.

"Caleb! Are you trying to injure my other shoulder too?" said Ethan in an annoyed whisper.

"Shh!" Cal hissed sharply. Ethan glared at him but fell silent. The two of them waited. A few moments passed, then he heard footsteps. Quiet, stealthy footsteps. He peered around the corner.

Someone was walking up the corridor. But not just walking. They were looking around nervously as though worried they might be seen.

Cal quickly pulled back before they looked behind them.

"Cal? What's going on?" whispered Ethan.

Cal turned eagerly to Ethan. "It's Rita," he whispered. "Behaving in a Very Suspicious Manner."

Ethan looked exasperated. "And what exactly do you mean by that?"

"What do you think I mean?" said Cal. "She's creeping around, making sure nobody can see her."

"But why would she do that?" said Ethan.

"Could be she's looking for tramadol," said Cal.

Ethan shook his head. "Why would she be doing that? Rita wasn't on the list!" He gave Cal a suspicious look. "Assuming you didn't forget her file."

"No, I did get it and she's not on tramadol," said Cal. "She's on the pill but not much else."

"Then whatever she's doing, it can't be anything to do with the tramadol, can it?" said Ethan impatiently.

Cal smiled knowingly. "How do you know that? Maybe the real thief talked her into helping out. I say we follow her – but carefully. We don't want her to spot us."

"So, how are we going to do that?" said Ethan. "If she's looking all around her, she's definitely going to notice if she's being followed."

"We'll just have to be careful," said Cal. "Hide in doorways. That sort of thing."

"Cal, that kind of things only works in films," said Ethan. "And not usually very good films either."

Cal stuck his head around the corner again. "Okay, she's gone. So now we follow."

"That's going to be _very_ easy if we don't know where she's gone," said Ethan.

Cal ignored him. He walked up the corridor slowly, aware Rita might have gone into one of the rooms. He opened every door on the way but found nothing more interesting apart from a porter and a healthcare assistant kissing in a cupboard. Cal found it particularly interesting as they were topless and both female.

"Oh my goodness! I'm terribly sorry!" said Ethan and shut the door.

"Ethan! I was enjoying that!" said Cal.

"That was part of the problem," said Ethan. "Besides, I thought we were stalking Rita."

Cal smiled. "Topless women kissing... stalking hot little blondes... I do love working here."

Ethan rolled his eyes but refrained from comment.

They reached the end of the corridor and Cal peered around the corner, in time to see Rita walking through a door and closing it behind her.

Cal leaned back against the wall, disappointed. "She's gone to see Connie."

"Then we'd better wait for her to come out," said Ethan.

"And then what?" said Cal. "Do we speak to Connie or follow Rita? Or… I know! We can split up. I'll talk to Connie because I'm a very confident speaker and you can stalk Rita. Even if she does catch you, no-one would suspect you of anything."

They waited. Cal was keen to stay hidden, but Ethan thought they'd rouse less suspicion if they were standing, having a chat, with one of them keeping half an eye on Connie's office. Cal wanted it to be half _his_ eye, but Ethan said it had better be him because no-one would be too surprised if he looked weird.

After a few minutes, Rita came out and shut the door behind her. She looked left and right, a look of fear coming briefly to her face as she spied Cal and Ethan. Then she turned and walked away from them.

Cal was all for making an immediate move, but Ethan grabbed his arm and firmly told him to wait. After Ethan had counted to fifty, he led the way towards Connie's room.

Cal pushed ahead of him and knocked on the door.

"Is there a problem?" said an icy voice.

Cal jumped a mile, too terrified to appreciate the fact that Ethan had jumped high enough to dislodge his glasses.

"That… that wasn't coming from inside the office," said Ethan.

Cal looked around the corner. Connie was there, speaking very sternly to Max and another porter. He returned to Ethan, confused. "But why was Rita in there if Connie wasn't? And why didn't Connie lock the door?"

Ethan thought for a moment. "We don't know for certain that Rita didn't use a key."

"She didn't lock the door on the way out though," said Cal.

"She couldn't with us there," said Ethan. "Then we'd have wondered what she was doing with the key."

Cal walked over to the door. He looked around to check they were unobserved, then he opened the door and went in. The room was empty.

"Caleb!" hissed Ethan.

Cal grabbed his arm. "Come on! Quickly!" He shut the door behind them.

"Cal, what are you doing?" said Ethan. "There is absolutely no evidence to prove that whatever Rita was doing was anything to do with our investigation."

"She was obviously up to something though, wasn't she?" said Cal. He scanned Connie's desk and jiggled the mouse to switch the computer on. When the password screen came up, he typed in _jacob_ , but it wasn't correct.

Ethan was almost jumping up and down on the spot in his agitation. "Cal, leave it alone! We know Rita didn't touch the computer or it wouldn't have been hibernating, would it?"

Cal stopped typing _grace_. "You're right," he admitted unwillingly. He looked at the desk. It was covered with paperwork. "This is hopeless. If Rita's stolen something from the desk, how would we even know?"

"Rita didn't touch the desk either," said Ethan. "It's too tidy."

Cal looked at the desk in disbelief. "Tidy? There's more space on my bedroom floor!"

Ethan couldn't help smiling a little bit. "But everything's in piles, Cal. Neat piles. Rita didn't have time to search through each pile and put them all back together neatly." He touched Cal's arm. "Whatever she's doing, it's nothing to do with the tramadol, so let's go."

Cal ignored him, bending down to investigate Connie's desk drawers. Thanks to Ethan's training, he could see that Rita hadn't rifled through them. Everything was neatly arranged. He opened the bottom drawer. Paper clips, staples, printer cartridges, elastic bands, drawing pins, tramadol… "ETHAN!"

Ethan jumped and hit himself somewhere rather personal on the desk. He fell backwards onto the floor. "Cal… oh my goodness… that… hurts!"

"Oh, who cares, Ethan?" said Cal dismissively. "You never use it anyway! Stop whimpering and look what I found."

"I… do… use… it… for… something… important!"

Cal waved the box in his face. "You're the one who checked the doctors' files. You're absolutely sure Connie isn't on tramadol?"

"I'm… sure…" moaned Ethan. "She's on… lots of things… but not… tramadol."

Cal turned to Ethan with interest. "Oh yeah? What's she on?"

"Not… telling you," whimpered Ethan. "I need a doctor."

"You are a doctor," said Cal.

Ethan moaned again. "Has this… never… happened... to you?"

"Yeah, it was a _disaster_ ," said Cal with feeling. "I had to cancel my date: can you believe it? She was really hot too. But I bounced back the next day. I did quite a lot of bouncing!" He smiled. "But this is no time to be asking me for tips, Ethan. We need to figure out what's going on. Either Connie is the thief and she's somehow bypassed getting her tramadol in her notes because she's clinical lead or Rita planted this."

Ethan's answer was something like a sob. Cal finally looked at him properly. Ethan was curled into a little ball. His face was white and screwed up with pain and there were tears on his cheeks. The tramadol diminished in importance.

"Ethan… hey. It's okay." Cal stroked his hair. "Can you sit up for me?"

"No," whispered Ethan.

Cal slid Ethan's arm under his shoulders, being careful of the injured one, and pulled Ethan into a sitting position. He hugged his brother carefully. "It's okay, Ethan. It's okay. I know it hurts, but it will go off in a minute. When you're ready, I'll take you back to the naughty cupboard and get you some ice. Okay?"

"Okay," muttered Ethan.

Cal rubbed his arm. "We should take the box with us though. We can dust it for fingerprints. It will have mine on, but if Connie put it there, it'll have her fingerprints too. If it was Rita, it'll have hers."

"How are you going to dust for fingerprints?" said Ethan, still sounding a bit tearful.

Cal hadn't thought this far. "Um… with dust?"

" _Dust_ ," said Ethan, unimpressed. "And if you do find one set of fingerprints that isn't yours, how will you know if it's Connie's or Rita's? Get an ink pad and tell them you're taking the whole ED's fingerprints?"

Cal looked at his brother in admiration. "Ethan, you're a genius!"

"You're obviously not one, if you thought I was being serious," mumbled Ethan.

"But I'll look after you first," said Cal kindly. "Do you think you could stand up? I think getting caught by Mrs Beauchamp is the one thing that would make you feel even worse."

Ethan laughed shakily. "I think maybe you're right for once."

"Come on then." Cal managed to haul him into a standing position, but it didn't take him long to realise Ethan couldn't walk. "Okay. I'll carry you."

He waited for the horror to suffuse Ethan's face, but Ethan just nodded. "Okay."

Cal stuffed the tramadol box in his pocket and carried his still-groaning brother to the door. He was trying to work out how to open it when he heard Connie's key in the lock. He froze, watching as the doorknob turned, but it didn't open. "Ethan, how would you feel about climbing out of the window?"

But it was too late. Connie had unlocked the door.


	20. Chapter 20

**westlife4ever80** , thank you for your review. It will certainly be very difficult for Cal and Ethan to get out of this one! No matter what explanation they come up with, they can't deny the fact they were in her office without permission!

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , I was quite tempted to let them jump out of the window, but I didn't think they'd be able to do it quickly enough, especially as Ethan can hardly walk and only has one working arm. Besides, I'd have needed to get them together again for the following conversation. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , I think you're right - I definitely like seeing Cal and Ethan in a tight spot! It's because we care about them and the more they suffer, the more it brings out our protective instincts... I'm sure that's why we like to see them suffer! And it wouldn't be much of a story if they didn't. Thank you for your review.

* * *

"Um… Ethan… fainted," said Cal. There was a lot he'd do to embarrass Ethan, but telling the truth in this instance wasn't one of them.

Ethan shut his eyes obligingly.

Connie's eyes seemed to be boring right into Cal's brain. "I'm sorry to hear that, Dr Knight, but that doesn't explain what you're doing in my office. Or how you unlocked the door."

"It was unlocked already," said Cal.

"Really?" said Connie.

"Did you leave your bag unattended at any point?" asked Cal. He felt like a proper detective now.

"Yes, I did," admitted Connie. "A patient was going into Resus as I arrived. A rather uncooperative patient. I handed my bag to one of the nurses and went to help."

"Let me guess. The nurse was Rita?" asked Cal, proud of his deductive powers.

"No, it was Louise," said Connie.

Cal was embarrassed to be wrong, but still, this was interesting.

"But when I went to get my bag, it had disappeared," said Connie. "I was just about to mount a search when Rita appeared with the bag just now, saying Louise had given it to her. The keys were in there and I had no reason to suspect they hadn't always been there." She walked behind her desk and stopped. "Have you been in my drawers?"

"Only in my fantasies," said Cal smoothly.

Ethan couldn't restrain a little gasp of horror.

He really wasn't doing a very good job at being unconscious, thought Cal, crossly. Though at least it must mean the pain was going off. Cal wouldn't wish that kind of pain on anybody.

"We can discuss your desire to wear women's underwear later," said Connie. "Put your brother down: I can tell he's not unconscious. Then I want you to know what you're doing in my office. And I want the truth."

* * *

To Cal's surprise, Connie actually listened, only interrupting occasionally and only to clarify a point. When Cal (with the odd interjection from Ethan when he'd forgotten something) had finally finished, Connie sat in silence for a moment, her expression thoughtful. "May I see the box of tramadol?"

Cal took it out of his pocket and handed it to her.

Connie turned it over. "I don't suppose you happened to notice who these tablets belonged to?"

Cal shook his head, mentally kicking himself. That should have been the first thing he'd checked.

"These tablets were prescribed for Rita Freeman," said Connie. She opened the box. "Two tablets missing. Presumably taken by Rita. She must have been in a lot of pain to need tramadol. You'd think the last thing she'd want to do was to leave these lying around. Yet here they are in my drawer, shortly after Rita spent some time alone in my office."

"But why would Rita put her tablets in your drawer?" asked Ethan, who was sitting with his legs quite a bit further apart than usual.

"Why would anyone?" Connie reached for the phone on her desk, then stopped and offered the receiver to Cal.

Cal took it. "Um, who am I supposed to be calling?"

"The pharmacy and see if you can find out who prescribed the tramadol for Sister Freeman."

Cal hesitated and then took the phone – whenever Connie told you to do something, it was usually a very good idea to do it. "Hi, this is Dr Knight from the ED. I understand you made up a prescription of tramadol for Rita Freeman today. Would you be able to tell me which doctor prescribed the tablets for her?"

There was a short silence and Cal guessed the pharmacist, or whoever had answered the phone, was checking to see where the call was being made from. Apparently satisfied that no-one would be in Connie's office without permission (which showed how much _she_ knew), she gave him the name. Cal thanked her, put the phone down and turned back to the others.

"You'll never guess who it was!" he said.

"I'd say Dr Lily Chao," said Connie.

Cal was slightly annoyed. Connie was as bad as Ethan: always guessing everything. "How did you know that?"

"Because she's the only doctor on your list of suspects," said Connie. "And only the name of a suspect would put _that_ look on your face."

Ethan gasped. "Do you think Lily is prescribing tramadol for random staff members without telling them, not making a record of it, and then keeping it for herself?"

"Highly unlikely," said Connie.

Cal tried not to feel smug that Ethan had got something wrong for once.

"It would look very odd if Dr Chao suddenly started collecting her patients' prescriptions from the pharmacy," said Connie. "And considering Rita stole the key to my office and a box of her tablets has suddenly appeared in my drawer, it's only natural to assume Rita put them there."

"Unless Rita suspected they might be here and was looking for them," said Cal.

Ethan shook his head. "If Rita was looking for the tablets, she'd have found them. I can't see her forgetting to look in the drawers."

"Besides, the tablets were prescribed today," said Connie. "I'm sure someone will confirm I arrived less than an hour ago. I haven't really had the time to discover the existence of the tablets, steal them, hide them, and then leave my office long enough for Rita to mount a search."

Cal nodded. "The prescription was made up half an hour ago and I expect someone can confirm you were in Resus then. Rita must have seen her chance and grabbed it." He frowned. "But Rita couldn't have got the prescription without Lily's help. Does that mean they're in this together?"

"Not necessarily," said Connie. "If Rita wanted tramadol, she needed someone to prescribe it for her. Lily might have been the first person she saw."

"Rita isn't on our list," said Ethan.

"No: I don't imagine for a moment that Rita is the thief," said Connie. "She just saw another opportunity to try to get rid of me."

"But why would she do that?" said Ethan blankly.

Connie sighed. "This goes no further."

"You can trust us," said Ethan.

"Rita's husband was brought in as a patient last year. He's a convicted paedophile. Grace was in the hospital with me that day and when she and Rita's husband went missing at the same time, I assumed he'd kidnapped her. As it happened, they weren't together and Grace was fine, but I was furious with Rita for bringing a paedophile into the hospital; – which was wrong of me: it's not her fault her husband needed hospital treatment. I told her I wanted her out of the hospital. She's never forgiven me."

Sympathy shone in Ethan's eyes. "I'm so sorry, Mrs Beauchamp. It must have been terrifying to lose Grace, particularly in those circumstances."

"I'm sure I'd have been just the same if Matilda had disappeared," offered Cal.

Connie smiled gratefully. "Thank you. But I shouldn't have done it and I should have apologised before now. I can't blame Rita for being deeply hurt and insulted. She's gone too far, of course – much too far – but so did I."

"I'm sure you can sort this out," said Ethan supportively.

"I hope so," said Connie. "That's something I'll need to sort out myself. But in the meantime, let's not forget the tramadol thief who gave Rita the idea."

"Do you have any ideas of who it might be?" asked Cal.

"I don't think it's Jacob, but you mustn't take my word for that," said Connie. "David seems the most likely as he's new and he obviously has problems. But Lily has been through a lot and I'd be inclined to say Louise isn't terribly happy. As for Big Mac, I can't see it, but the thing with addicts is that you often can't."

Cal nodded in agreement. "So what do you think we should do? Do you want to take over the investigation?"

"Dr Knight, I have a department to run," said Connie. "Do you honestly think I have the time? No: you've done a good job so far and I'd like you to continue." She paused. "But I would also like you to do some work."

Cal gave an embarrassed smile.

"Over the course of the day, I would like you to work alongside your five suspects," said Connie. "When you get a chance, I'd like you to speak to them about the tramadol theft. Ask them where they were, what they were doing and who they were with when the theft took place. When you speak to Lily, perhaps you could also mention the tramadol she prescribed for Rita – although I think it's unlikely the two cases are connected, it's interesting that Lily could have a role to play in both."

Ethan looked nervous. "Do you think they'd tell us the truth?"

"Those that are innocent certainly have no reason to lie," said Connie, "unless, of course, they were conducting a clandestine affair in a certain cupboard at the time in question – but I think you'd know more about that than me, Dr Hardy."

Ethan looked away, blushing.

"It might save time if you divide the suspects up between them, but you do work exceptionally well as a team, strange as it seems to be saying that, so if you would rather continue to work together, that's fine," said Connie. "But please try to get some work done as well. I do want to clear Charlie's name, but we are here to help the patients."

"We'll do our best, Mrs Beauchamp," said Ethan earnestly. "With our work as well as out detecting."

"In your case, I never have any doubt of that, Dr Hardy," said Connie. She smiled at Cal. "And you're fast changing my opinion of you, Dr Knight. Now, off you go – and if you see Rita, feel free to question her too as she is now officially yet another tramadol-taker in my department, but when you've done that, perhaps you could tell her I would like to see her in my office."


	21. Chapter 21

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , true, but Cal isn't always known for being wise! It looks like Connie hasn't reacted too badly, but perhaps she's holding back because she wants Cal to find out the thief is before she fires him! Thank you for your review.

 **westlife4ever80** , that's something I love about Connie - she's usually so strict, but just when you're not expecting it, she'll do something really caring! She has really come to respect and perhaps even love (non-romantically) Charlie, so I see this as being mainly for him. Thank you for your review.

 **Panicatcasualty123** , thank you for your review. They have got quite a long mission ahead of them, cutting five suspects down to one and possibly speaking to Rita, but I'm going to try to do this fairly quickly and make this between 25 and 30 chapters. I'm glad you liked Ethan's very bad attempt at looking unconscious.

 **X-Sammii-X** , thank you for your review. I think there's very little Connie doesn't already know! I will be very sad if anything happens to her. She's a great character and I love her. When I'm watching, I think I probably laugh more at Cal when he's trying to be serious than when he isn't! Poor Ethan. I've been so cruel to him in this story.

* * *

"Poor Rita," said Ethan with feeling. "I can't believe she'd really do that."

Cal nodded sadly. "Well, it was either that or Connie being a tramadol thief."

"What do you think would make Rita do something like this?" said Ethan, his brown eyes worried. "I mean, the situation with Grace and her ex-husband must have been deeply distressing and her ex-husband was admitted again a few weeks ago…"

"It's not surprising if that's upset her, but I think there's more going on," said Cal, lowering his voice. "I've got a feeling Iain isn't treating her very well. Maybe it's messing with her head a bit."

Ethan raised his eyebrows. "Isn't that a bit rich coming from you?"

"You could say my experience of treating women badly puts me in a good position to recognise it in others."

"I suppose so," said Ethan. "But it's-" He broke off as they saw Rita coming towards them.

She stopped. "Ethan, are you okay?"

Ethan looked startled. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"You're walking funny," said Rita. "You look like you've had an injury somewhere very personal."

Ethan blushed. "I don't know why you'd think that, Rita. But thank you very much for your concern."

Cal grabbed the opportunity to rescue his brother and question the suspect. He put on a concerned voice. "Rita, are you okay? You look like you're in pain too. I thought that earlier too when you were fetching whatever-it-was for Mrs Beauchamp."

"I wasn't fetching anything," said Rita. "I just went to ask her if she'd seen something I'd lost. She wasn't there, but as she'd left the door open, so I didn't think she'd be long. I waited a while, but then I really needed to get back to work."

Cal had to admit this wasn't unconvincing. If he'd happened to find Connie's door open, he might have done the same thing. "What is it you've lost?"

"My painkillers," said Rita. "I just put them down for a minute when I was seeing to someone in Resus and when I turned around, they'd gone."

"What kind of painkillers were they?" asked Ethan.

"Tramadol," said Rita. "They were in a box with my name on. Lily prescribed them for me."

Cal looked at her with interest. So, she was admitting to it then. That fitted with Connie's idea that Rita was setting her up. If Rita really had lost something, it would be natural to ask people if they'd seen it.

"I think someone's out to get me," said Rita, lowering her voice. "Maybe the same person who's out to get Charlie. It's not just my painkillers that have gone missing. My file's gone too."

"Ah, yes," said Ethan guiltily. "Actually, um, I took your file. I treated somebody called Freeman and I must have grabbed the wrong file by accident. I mean, I _did_ grab the wrong file. I'm sorry."

Cal gave an inward sigh. Ethan was such a bad liar.

"But you've put it back now?" said Rita.

"I don't know if I've actually put it back _quite_ yet," said Ethan, looking everywhere but at Rita.

Rita stared at him. "Why not? Why didn't you put it back when you got the right one?" She looked at him in sudden suspicion. "Have you been checking all our files to see if we're on tramadol? Have you got them in that cupboard of yours?"

Cal really did sigh this time. Rita always had been intuitive. Now she was positively psychic.

"Are you accusing me?" Rita looked upset. "Just because I'm on tramadol, that doesn't make me the thief."

"Of course not," said Ethan. "I'm so sorry if I implied that. I know you're not the tramadol thief because this is the first time you've been prescribed tramadol. So you can't be an addict."

Rita's eyes filled with tears. "Who do you think is doing this to me, Ethan? Persecuting me? Taking my things?" A look of horror came to her face. "Do you think it's Mark? Do you think he's here in the hospital? Following me about?"

"I really think that's very unlikely," said Ethan soothingly. "Someone would have noticed him if he was. I think it's much more likely someone saw your tramadol and decided it wasn't safe for it to be lying around. They're probably keeping it safe for you. In fact, I have an idea of who it might be."

Cal stared at Ethan. What _was_ he on about now?

"Who?" said Rita, her eyes round.

"Mrs Beauchamp," said Ethan. "We saw us just now and she mentioned she was looking for you. She'd like to see you in her office."

"Did she?" said Rita tensely. "What about?"

"Do you really think she'd tell us?" said Cal, quite proud of himself for not lying.

Rita definitely looked nervous now. "I've got patients to see."

"Well, when you've got a spare minute," said Cal.

Ethan nodded. "Though as you've had medication stolen, it's probably worth informing Mrs Beauchamp. It could be one of the doctors who's the thief."

They all turned as someone called Rita's name. "I've got your… your _test results_ ," said Elle.

"Oh, right, thanks," said Rita. She gave Cal and Ethan a nervous glance. "I'd better go. See you later. Thanks for being supportive."

Cal looked at Elle curiously. Test results? And obviously not just any test results, judging by the way Elle had emphasised the words.

Elle took Rita's arm and they walked around the corner.

Ethan pressed his finger to his lips and tiptoed after them. This was painful enough to make him gasp, but he managed to stay reasonably quiet. Cal followed, wondering what Ethan was thinking. Could these be the results of a test that proved long-term tramadol use?

"It was negative," said Elle.

"Oh, thank God," said Rita with deep feeling.

"So there's one less thing to worry about," said Elle. "And it's not in your records, so no-one will have to know."

Rita's voice was full of gratitude. "Thanks for doing that, Elle."

"I was glad to help – and even more glad you've got the result you wanted," said Elle.

"Yeah, I really don't think I could have coped with a baby," said Rita. "I do think Iain would be a great dad, but sometimes I think he's not that into me."

Elle spoke reassuringly. "Well, at least you've got the baby worry out of the way. Sometimes couples do go through bad patches. If it's meant to be, you'll come out stronger on the other side."

"Yeah, you're right," said Rita. "Thanks, Elle. Really."

* * *

"Rita thought she was _pregnant_!" said Ethan, once they were safely in the naughty cupboard. "She was sure enough to ask for a test from Elle – either that or Elle caught her with the equipment and offered to help. But the very same day, Rita asked Lily for tramadol."

"So?" said Cal.

"Tramadol is not recommended in pregnancy," said Ethan. "Lily and Rita would both know that. Lily would have asked if Rita might be pregnant before she gave her the prescription and if Rita had admitted there was a chance, Lily would have given her codeine instead. But she didn't."

"Maybe she wanted to have the pregnancy test as a precaution, just to check before she started taking them?" said Cal.

"But why not wait till the test came through before asking for the prescription?" said Ethan. "It wouldn't take long and it would be a bit of a waste if she got a full box of tablets and then had to throw them away – you can't return unused medication."

Cal frowned, certain there was something wrong with that. Then it hit him. He looked at Ethan triumphantly. "But the medication _wasn't_ unused. There were two tablets missing. And there is a circumstance when a pregnant woman might take tramadol – if she was addicted to it!"

"Rita isn't addicted to tramadol," said Ethan with certainty.

Cal was injured. "How can you know that?"

"Because if Rita had a tramadol addiction, she wouldn't have let those tablets out of her sight," said Ethan.

* * *

Cal was still smarting slightly about being proved wrong about Rita, but he was mostly annoyed with himself for not realising.

Of course Rita wasn't a tramadol addict. While he thought it was just about possible the medication might be left somewhere – for example if she'd been surprised in the act of taking a tablet and shoved it into a convenient hiding place – she would hardly have tried taking it in the clinical lead's office.

The fact it meant Rita had taken advantage of the panic over tramadol to ask for some medication she didn't need was still more worrying. It meant Connie was almost certainly right about Rita setting her up and the thought distressed Ethan more than ever.

"She's obviously not well," he said almost tearfully. "She's been through so much. It's not surprising if she isn't thinking straight. I know _I_ wasn't thinking straight after that black alert. I actually thought running away would help!"

"Yeah: what kind of idiot thinks running away will solve anything?" said Cal teasingly.

Ethan managed a smile, but then he was serious again. "We've got to help her, Cal. And the tramadol addict too. They've done bad things, but they're not bad people. They need support, not punishment. That's why Charlie is protecting the person who did this."

"And we'll try to make sure they get support," said Cal. "But for now, we need to get on with finding out who the tramadol thief is. And as Lily prescribed Rita the tramadol, she seems a good place to start." He looked at Ethan. "Those two missing tramadol. Do you think Lily might have stolen them for herself before giving the box to Rita?"

Ethan shook his head. "I don't think so. If you take two tablets from a blister pack, it's obvious they've been stolen. It would make much more sense to take a whole blister pack. Then it looks like someone made an error in the factory and put in the wrong number. It also means Lily gets a lot more tablets that way."

"So where did they go?" said Cal. "Rita wouldn't have taken them. Not before she got the result of the pregnancy test."

Ethan shrugged. "She probably just threw them away."

"To make it look like Connie took them?"

"More likely to make it look like _Rita_ took them," said Ethan. "If you're in pain and someone gives you painkillers, the natural thing to do is to take some straight away. It would look a little bit odd if Rita managed to lose a whole box of tablets before she'd even taken one. Rita might be a little bit messed up at the moment, but she's far from stupid."


	22. Chapter 22

**X-Sammii-X** , I have a DVD with Chloe Howman in and she's brilliant in that too. I'm very sad she left. I think Elle was probably grateful Rita had stopped hating her and that's partly why she was so kind - but I think she probably is kind really. Cal and Ethan will get to the truth eventually! Thank you for your review.

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , maybe Rita is pregnant... she was very eager to rekindle her relationship with Iain and when she realised that wasn't going to happen, she certainly left in a hurry! I'm sure someone told me Rita was going to have a baby, but maybe I'm getting mixed up with fanfictions. Thank you for your review.

 **Panicatcasualty123** , I love the idea of a mini-Rita toddling around! How adorable would that be? I'm going to have to put mini-Rita in one of my new stories now. But I thought this story had enough complications already without Rita being pregnant too! I'm glad you like Cal and Ethan in this story. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , thank you for your reviews. I think Connie would scare me to death if she was my boss (she scares me to death anyway!) but she is usually fair and she does have a lot of compassion, which you can't say for every boss. Cal and Ethan are probably starting to run out of good excuses now! But I'm glad that's not ruining the story. I'm so glad you're enjoying this. Speaking of mazes, there are more twists and turns to come.

 **Is-there-somewhere-x** , thank you for your review. I think it was really sad that Rita lost so much support and friendship just because she lied - it was a terrible lie, but she'd been through so much and she couldn't really be expected to think straight. I just wanted her to have some of the compassion that was shown to Big Mac.

 **InfinityAndOne** , thank you for your review - I'm so glad you're enjoying this so much. I'm never sure if any of this makes sense or not, so it's really good to know it's working for you. They still have no idea who did it, but over the next few chapters, they'll be able to eliminate some more suspects. They will get there eventually!

 **westlife4ever80** , Rita was definitely up to no good and she'll probably be in quite a lot of trouble, but at least Cal and Ethan were able to work out she really wasn't a suspect in their particular case. She has enough on her mind already without being accused of theft! Lily is indeed next in line! Thank you for your review.

* * *

Lily eyed Cal and Ethan suspiciously. "I can't tell you."

"Mrs Beauchamp asked us to find out who the tramadol thief is," said Ethan. "We just need to check Rita's statement – and it's fine to discuss your patients with other doctors."

Lily looked uncertain, but finally she nodded. "Rita asked me to prescribe a painkiller and I did."

"What kind of pain was it?" said Cal.

"I do not need to tell you that."

A faint blush came to Ethan's cheeks. "Did Rita tell you she was suffering from, um, menstrual cramps?"

Cal burst out laughing. "Ethan, that's hardly likely."

Lily's eyes widened slightly. "How do you know that?" she asked Ethan.

"Because it's one of the few instances where a doctor might hand over the tablets on request without further investigation," said Ethan. "If the pain was caused by an injury, you would examine the area and send the patient for a scan or x-ray. If Rita had a headache, you would want to look into possible headache causes before prescribing powerful painkillers. If Rita is showing signs of some form of chronic pain condition, it's likely we'd want to speak to her neurologist if she has one and refer her if she doesn't. But if it's, um, _that_ …"

"Rita did ask me if I would consider not putting it in her notes," said Lily. "Of course I could not agree to that. But I couldn't write it into Rita's notes because her file were missing."

"Oh, that was my fault," said Ethan. "I, um, I took the file by accident and didn't realise. I'm sorry."

Lily gave him a sharp look. "I think you took the file on purpose to see who was on tramadol long-term."

"Of course he didn't!" said Cal.

The look Lily gave him suggested he was as bad a liar as Ethan. "The truth, please, Dr Hardy."

Ethan was no match for her stern gaze. "We wanted to know who had been on tramadol long-term but had come off it shortly before the theft was discovered."

"It could be a long-term user who had run out early," said Lily.

Cal nodded. "It could be. And that's why we have to ask you what you were doing on last Saturday afternoon - 28th May 2016."

"Let me see," said Lily. "28 May 2016… I believe my afternoon began with a woman in her 20s with a query fractured ankle. I sent the patient for an x-ray. This showed that there was no fracture and I diagnosed a sprain of the talofibular ligament. I also saw a young boy who had swallowed a large coin – I believe it was one of the old fifty pence pieces, which were somewhat larger than the current ones. The patient was asymptomatic, but he told his mother he about it and she rightly brought him to the ED. The patient's airway was clear and respiratory function was good, but as it was a larger coin and was not circular, there was concern it might cause damage to the digestive tract. A CT scan revealed a small-intestinal obstruction. By this time the patient was experiencing abdominal pain and nausea, though this could have been psychosomatic. I arranged for an endoscopy under general anaesthesia to be performed. The-"

"Hold on." Cal raised his hands. "You couldn't remember all that. You must be making it up. And the only reason you'd do that is if you were actually doing something else. Like stealing tramadol from a patient."

"I wasn't!" said Lily.

"Then why are you lying?" asked Cal.

"I-I'm not lying," said Lily. "That did happen on the afternoon in question."

"And you're seriously saying you remember all that?" said Cal.

Lily looked away.

Then Ethan spoke, his voice gentle. "Lily, did you check the files to see what you were doing that day and make sure you knew every detail?"

Lily nodded faintly.

Cal pounced. "And why would you do that unless you were hiding something?"

"Why, Lily?" asked Ethan, still gently. "I can guess, but I think we need to hear it from you."

"Because…" Lily was looking at Ethan. "Because I knew you would suspect me and I wanted to be able to account for my movements."

"And why would we suspect you?" said Cal.

Lily didn't answer.

Ethan moved closer to her. "Lily, it's okay. You can tell us – and if I'm right about the reason why, I understand completely and I might have done the same thing in your place."

Cal gave Ethan wide-eyed look. "I hope you know what you're talking about, Ethan, because I have no idea."

Lily looked at Ethan and seemed slightly comforted. "I did it because I knew you would suspect me."

"Why?" asked Ethan softly.

Lily looked close to tears.

Ethan took her hand in his. "It's okay. Just tell us."

"In a case like this, anyone who is not normal is always suspected," said Lily in a choking voice. "I know I'm not normal. I don't know how to talk to people. No-one likes me."

Ethan stroked her hand. "I like you, Lily. I like you very much and I never suspected you."

Lily's eyes filled with tears. "I knew that Jacob, Louise, David and Big Mac have been taking tramadol. David is also not normal. But David is so likeable. I was sure that you would suspect me."

Cal stared at her. "How did you know it was one of those five? Did you check the files too?"

"I checked the computer records," said Lily. "I… I borrowed a tablet and checked the records in the on-call room."

Ethan looked ruefully at Cal. "It would have saved us a bit of trouble if we'd thought of that."

Ethan smiled encouragingly at Lily. "So you found out what you were doing that day and memorised it?"

Lily nodded. "I know it was not strictly necessary, but I thought it might stop you from being suspicious – but even if it didn't, it would be very easy for you to check up on it. I can give you the names of all the patients." She gave a hint of a smile. "I can get you a tablet that's connected to the hospital system if you like."

"Yeah, that would be good," said Cal, wishing that they'd spoken to Lily a lot sooner. Dylan had known what to do, but Lily had actually done it.

"That's all right, Lily." Ethan smiled and squeezed her hand before letting go. "I really don't think there's any need. Thank you for being so honest."

"Now, hang on!" said Cal. "We can't just assume Lily's telling the truth."

"He's right," said Lily. "If you're doing this properly, you do need to check my story. I…I would really like to be officially cleared of suspicion as soon as possible."

Ethan smiled. "And you will be."

"First we must go to my flat and I'll show you my tramadol supply, which is labelled with my name and the prescription date," said Lily. "When we come back, I'll find you a tablet so you can check the files."

* * *

An hour and a half later, Cal and Ethan entered the cupboard to find Lily and a tablet waiting.

"Now, that's what I like to see when entering a naughty cupboard," said Cal. "A beautiful woman, all ready and waiting for me."

"Cal!" said Ethan anxiously, but Lily did not seem offended.

She actually looked almost amused. "Cal, that is a very unwise comment to make when I am holding a tablet. It is light enough for me to lift it easily, but heavy enough for me to do considerable damage if I know exactly where to place it. And I do."

"So, you're not a thief, but you might consider murder?" said Cal.

"Not as a rule," said Lily. "But perhaps I would make an exception for you."

Ethan smiled. "I'd be lying if _I_ said I hadn't considered it."

"Oh, yeah? Well, I've considered murdering you too!" said Cal.

"I don't doubt it. I'm sure I can be highly irritating," said Ethan.

Lily handed Ethan the tablet. "Would you like to check my statement now?"

Cal stood beside Ethan as he searched the hospital database. Lily gave them the names of the patients. On checking the files, they saw that the patients had been treated by Dr Chao.

"It would have been possible for me to take the tablets between patients," said Lily.

"Yes," said Ethan, "but you would hardly need to with five months' supply in your flat. In any case, the tablets were probably stolen either from the relatives' room or from Resus and you were extremely busy in cubicles. You would have had no reason to enter Resus or the relatives' room - and I think someone would have noticed if you had. I don't see how you could possibly have done it." He nudged Cal with his elbow.

Cal sighed, but he knew Ethan meant it. "Lily, I'm sorry I accused you of lying."

"I think it was a reasonable assumption," said Lily. "I knew my facts far too well not to arouse suspicion."

Ethan smiled. "I wasn't suspicious. Your memory is incredible. But perhaps Cal did have a point for once."

"Hey!" said Cal. He searched his mind for some point of superiority over Ethan. "At least I can walk properly."

Lily nodded. "But you are moving much more easily than you were, Ethan. I am glad. I understand that is a painful place to be injured."

"How did you…" Ethan was blushing hotly.

"I'm a doctor," said Lily. "And I think not a bad one, though I made a mistake in prescribing Rita tramadol. Women who believe themselves to be pregnant do not normally complain of menstrual cramps. I don't see why she would lie about a pregnancy to anyone other than the possible father; therefore she wanted the tramadol for another reason."

Cal looked at her in amazement. "How do you know about the pregnancy test?"

"I overheard a conversation between Rita and Dr Gardner when I was… borrowing the tablet," said Lily. "I drew my own conclusions. Rita's file suggests she is not a tramadol addict, so she must wanted to frame someone for the crime. As she and Mrs Beauchamp have always disliked one another, she is my prediction."

"Lily," said Ethan seriously, "please would you consider helping us find the thief? You're much better at this than either of us and I think we could solve the mystery much more quickly with you on our side."


	23. Chapter 23

**X-Sammii-X** , thank you for your review. I hope to start writing about blonde mini-Rita quite soon. I'm glad you love Cal! I've noticed he often thinks he's right in the episode too. It could be annoying, but I just find it sweet! I think Ethan and Lily are sweet when they're being responsible too. They try so hard and take it so seriously.

 **westlife4ever80** , Lily seems to spend quite a lot of time putting Cal in his place! Either her opinion of him is genuinely know or she secretly fancies him. I wouldn't be surprised either way! Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , I hope it will get better now Lily's on board! It's unrealistic having three doctors detecting instead of working, but let's not worry about that! I'm afraid there are some sad David bits in this chapter. Poor Ethan... he has his arm in a sling, but everyone's obviously looking somewhere else! Thank you for your review.

 **Panicatcasualty123** , I think there is a good chance Lily will agree - the last time she was involved in a mystery, Ethan tried to send her home, but she wouldn't go! This story would probably be a lot shorter if they didn't keep forgetting about Big Mac's back and maybe that would be a good thing! Thank you for your review.

 **Is-there-somewhere-x** , thank you for your review. Lily is one of my favourite characters. I love her intelligence and her vulnerability - I'm glad you liked that I showed both sides to her character here. She has a few negative characteristics too, but I think that's probably a mixture of shyness and a difficult upbringing.

 **InfinityAndOne** , I hope Lily will hurry things along a bit and not let them get so sidetracked! Ethan can pick out faults in Cal's arguments, but then he gets caught up in all the different possibilities confuses himself. I'm glad you found Lily's reply to Cal funny - I think she can be quite funny sometimes. Thank you for your review.

* * *

"Louise," said Lily. "I would like a word with you, please."

Louise looked fed up. "I already said I was sorry! Why do you have to keep going on about it? My wrist was hurting and I dropped it."

"And then trod on it," said Lily. "And burst it. And caused a hazard. But I didn't want to talk about that."

"You've got a funny way of not talking about it," said Louise.

Cal couldn't help smiling a little bit. Even when she didn't want to talk about it, Lily couldn't resist mentioning it. She really was so much like Ethan.

Maybe one day Ethan would finally realise it.

Cal was privately worried there was more chance of him coming out of the closet than Ethan asking Lily out, but maybe he'd think about that (about Ethan and Lily, not about coming out) when they'd caught the thief.

"If you would like to come this way, please," said Lily, and led Louise to the cupboard with Cal and Ethan following behind. When they reached the cupboard, Ethan held the door open with his uninjured arm.

Louise folded her arms. "No way am I having a foursome with you lot."

"We don't want you to have a foursome with us," said Lily.

Louise looked offended. "Why not? What's wrong with me?"

"Our, um, personal life is not our immediate concern," said Ethan. "We were hoping you would assist with our enquiries concerning the theft of the tramadol."

"Who do you think you are? Sherlock?" said Louise. "Too short, too blond, too everything. And you're probably even worse at talking to women."

"If we could return to the topic in hand," said Lily. "We can discuss attractive actors another time, Louise."

"Don't tell me you fancy Sherlock?" gasped Louise.

"I like a man with high intelligence," said Lily.

Louise looked disappointed. "It's nothing to do with his bum then?"

Lily almost smiled. "If we talk about him later, I will let you know if that is also a focus of my admiration. All I will say now is that I am known for my skills of observation."

"It's a date!" said Louise gleefully. She looked at Cal and Ethan. "Just me and Lily though. No foursome."

"Of course not," said Ethan.

"Wouldn't dream of it," said Cal truthfully. In his dreams, Ethan would be replaced by Connie.

Louise smiled at him. "Oh, I don't mind if you dream about it. Just don't tell me about it, okay?"

Lily clearly thought they'd spent enough time chatting. She ushered them quickly inside. "Louise. I understand the issue to which you referred earlier was caused by a weakness in your wrist."

"Yeah, it was hurting," said Louise. "Cal thinks it's Kienbock's disease, but he must be mad if he seriously thinks that. There's so many other more likely things."

"May I see your hand, please?" said Lily. "No, there is no swelling. Can you tell me the location of the pain? That's the wrong place for avascular necrosis of the lunate. And the pain does not increase if I press here? Good. How about if I dorsiflex your middle finger?" Lily pulled Louise's it back gently.

"Ow!" said Louise.

Lily manipulated Louise's wrist and seemed unmoved by another cry of pain. "There is some stiffness, but no clicking. Can you grip my hand for me? That's good. Do you have a history of wrist fractures, Louise?"

"I did break my wrist once – distal radial – but that was the other wrist."

"Have you injured this wrist recently?"

Louise nodded. "I sprained it a couple of months ago."

Lily released her hand. "It is difficult to rule out Kienbock's on such a brief examination, but due to the location of the pain and your recent medical history, it would certainly not be my first thought and I have no idea why it was Dr Knight's."

Cal looked at the floor. He didn't quite like to say he'd used the condition as an excuse for asking Louise's age.

"What treatment were you given for the sprain?" asked Lily.

"Dr Hanna said to rest it." Louise looked at the floor. "But I maybe didn't rest it for quite as long as she said."

"Some doctors argue that immobilisation and compression can cause more harm than good," said Lily. "I believe it varies between patients - and in your case, it might have been better to listen to Dr Hanna. If you book yourself in as a patient, I'll be happy to make a proper examination later. Have you taken any pain relief?"

"Yeah, Zoe prescribed…" Louise stopped and gave Cal and Ethan a wary look. "…tramadol. But I only took it for two weeks and I'm not on it now."

Lily nodded. "And your dosage was relatively low."

"How do you know that?" Louise looked at Cal, then Ethan. "Do you think it's _me_ then?"

"We don't think anything at the moment," said Ethan. "But if you could tell us what you were doing on the afternoon of 28th May 2016, that would be a great help in establishing your innocence."

"How am I meant to know?" said Louise. "That was more than a week ago!"

Ethan's face fell slightly. "You don't know anything at all?"

"Well, what were _you_ doing on 28th May 2016?" said Louise.

"Um…"

"See? You don't remember," said Louise. "No-one could remember."

Ethan looked helplessly at Cal.

"Read my lips. I did not steal the tramadol!" said Louise. "Can I go back to work now?" She gave Cal, Ethan and Lily a disparaging look. "Maybe you should get back to work as well. There are people dying out there and you're obviously not cut out for being detectives. And Ethan…"

"Yes?"

"Not that I have any personal experience, but for that particular injury, ice can really help."

* * *

Cal smiled at David and tried to sound friendly. "Hey, David. How are you, mate?"

David looked a bit frightened. "I'm well, thank you, Cal."

"I was wondering if you wanted to spend your break in the cupboard with me, Ethan and Lily?" said Cal.

David actually took a step back. "Thank you for the offer, Cal. But no."

Cal stared at him. "What offer? I didn't offer you anything."

"Excuse me," said David, and hurried away. Cal saw him whispering to Robyn.

Robyn burst out laughing. "Don't worry! Cal didn't mean it like that. He's a straight as a ballerina's backbone."

"I always thought ballerina's backbones were very flexible," said David uncertainly.

"When they're walking, I mean," said Robyn. "But seriously: don't worry! He just wants to talk to you about the tramadol theft."

"Have they talked to you?" asked David.

Robyn looked slightly put out. "Not yet. I don't know why. No-one knows more about what goes on in the ED than me."

"But anyone can see you're not a criminal," said David. He blushed. "Sorry. I mean… sorry."

"No, that's a really nice thing to say," said Robyn. "Thank you, David." She was blushing too.

Cal smirked to himself. David and Robyn? Well, why not?

After a few minutes of smiling inanely at Robyn, David returned to Cal. "I'm sorry, Cal. There's been a misunderstanding. I'd be happy to spend my break with you, Ethan and Lily."

* * *

"28th May… I really don't know," said David. "Was that the day I helped the young lady with the double fracture of the right leg… I know that was a Tuesday. She kept joking that Tuesday was usually her lucky day. But I can't remember the date."

"28th May was a Saturday," said Lily. "Just over a week ago."

David nodded with a rueful smile. "Of course it was a Saturday. Nearly everything happens on a Saturday in Holby."

"Only in the ED," said Lily severely. "On Keller and Darwin wards upstairs, I think you'll find things usually happen on Tuesday."

"The young boy with stomach cramps who claimed to have swallowed a matchstick might have been on Saturday," said David. "No, on second thoughts, that was definitely a weekday. I remember he was supposed to be doing a maths test."

Cal grinned. He'd tried that one a few times, though never with a matchstick.

Ethan smiled sympathetically. "It is very difficult. Don't worry. Louise couldn't remember anything either."

"I'm sure it wasn't Charlie," said David anxiously. "He's been so nice to me. He offered me the job."

"And I'm glad he did," said Ethan.

It might have sounded a bit insincere from anybody else, but Cal knew Ethan meant it.

"So am I." David smiled at Ethan, but then a wary look came into his eyes. "Perhaps that was the day of the mortality café. A lady suffered chest pains. She thought she had lung cancer, but it turned out she hadn't."

Lily pressed a few buttons on the stolen tablet. "Can you tell me the patient's name, please?"

"Alison Appleton," said David.

Lily did a quick search. "Yes: that's the correct day." She looked hard at Ethan, confused. "It says you were her doctor. Why didn't say you were with David?"

"Oh, I didn't realise that was last Saturday," said Ethan. He looked embarrassed. "I suppose I never really thought about what I was doing. But I remember the patient. I worked with David and Robyn."

Cal looked at Ethan in disbelief. "So _you're_ David's alibi?"

David nodded tensely. "I think I was with Robyn and the patient most of the time, though I could have slipped out for a few minutes. But one day is very like another. And no detectives would think of questioning themselves."

"Did you visit Resus or the relatives' room?" asked Lily.

David shook his head. He wasn't smiling now. "No. I suppose I'd better tell you what happened. Dylan asked me to help with one of his patients who had a pair of scissors embedded in his leg. The patient mentioned his partner and her son by name and I realised I knew them. I lived near them for a while. I knew she was Suzie and he was Alfie. I used to wave to Alfie when i saw him. I didn't mean anything by it, but Suzie was worried. She threatened to call the police if I didn't leave Alfie alone." Sadness came to David's eyes. "I'd never spoken to him, but I could understand her concerns. Dylan said he'd let Elle know I was connected with the family and warned me Suzie was in the relatives' room. So I stayed away. Later, Mac asked me to help look for Alfie and I had to say no. I had no idea she was on tramadol, but I can't prove that." He looked appealingly at Ethan. "I know it looks bad, but I promise it wasn't me."


	24. Chapter 24

**X-Sammii-X** , it is upsetting the way Cal and Ethan keep questioning David - they actually discuss it in this chapter. I think I'd like to be a little bit more like Louise, but not too much!I like her confidence, though she doesn't necessarily feel like that underneath. I think Cal would really enjoy that foursome! Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , Lily and Louise have certain similarities - they're both confident and can seem hard, but they do have vulnerabilities underneath it. I can see them getting on well - or having big arguments! David is completely different and very gentle - I hope he has some big stories coming up. Thank you for your review.

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. I feel guilty about the way David has suffered in this story - he's obviously suffered a lot already and unfortunately, he's come under suspicion more than once.

 **westlife4ever80** , thank you for your review. I really like David too - he seems to observe very carefully so I can imagine having a good memory for detail. I'm so glad you like the story.

 **InfinityAndOne** , I'm glad I've got Lily's and Louise's personalities right - they are both quite difficult to write as they're not always nice - though I think Lily often does it unintentionally. It's very sad, but anyone unusual like David often will arouse suspicion and Cal and Ethan have to follow it through. Thank you for your review.

 _Thank you to **mmelon3** and **aminal8** for the follow and favourite._

* * *

Ethan wrote laboriously in his notebook as Lily slowly dictated their conclusions.

"David could have done it, but it seems unlikely now Dylan and Elle have confirmed the story he told them," said Lily. "He could have left his patient without arousing suspicion, but it would have been almost impossible for him to get into Resus without being seen by Dylan or Elle. We still need to ask Mac as the tablets could have been taken from the relatives' room, but even if David lied and is in fact on reasonable terms with the relative, it would have been extremely difficult for him to speak to her without being seen."

"If he was on reasonable terms with her, he'd have jumped at the chance to be her nurse," added Cal. "And why would anyone lie about a restraining order? That's only going to make him look even more suspicious." He sighed. "I don't think it's him though. I can't see David doing that. But I can't see any of them doing it."

"An addiction can lead to out-of-character behaviour," pointed Lily.

"That's true," admitted Cal.

Lily nodded at Ethan, then Cal. "Good work, both of you. Now I must get back to work – and I think you should do the same." She left the cupboard.

Immediately, Ethan started to look upset. "Oh, Cal, I hope David's okay. It's such a terrible thing to go through. He didn't deserve that at all! Then we kept questioning him… of course it's not him, but we have to be thorough with him if we're thorough with the others. All this is supposed to make it better for Charlie – and really for the thief too: I'm sure they'll feel better once they've owned up – but what if all we do is make things worse for David?"

Cal held out his arms. "Hey, come here." He half-expected Ethan to refuse a hug, but his little brother moved as quickly into his arms as his injury allowed. "It's okay, Nibbles. I'm sure it wasn't easy for him, but you were really kind to him and you've told him he can come back if he wants an off-the-record chat and you've apologised for any upset we've caused… you did all you could."

Ethan's voice was trembling. "Why are some people so horrible? How could anyone think David was bad?"

Cal rubbed his back. "I don't know, Nibbles, but that woman probably hasn't had an easy life if her ex-partner goes around stabbing people with scissors. We don't know her reasons for taking tramadol, but pain can really take it out of you. And nothing against David, but a lot of people do get paranoid when strangers wave at their children."

"But even if she's not a bad person, David still had to go through that," said Ethan unsteadily. "And now half the ED knows."

"No. Only me, you, Lily and Dylan know the full story and we won't say anything," said Cal. "Dylan obviously cares about him: he never even mentioned that David knew the family. He probably knew that would distract us and cause distress for David. It was… really kind of him. And he obviously told Elle enough to convince her there was nothing to worry about. They both obviously trust and like David."

"Maybe," whispered Ethan.

Cal held Ethan away from him and looked into his eyes. "It'll be okay, Nibbles. We'll sort this. We'll get Charlie out of trouble and then David won't have to worry either. And then we'll look out for David a bit. Make sure he's okay. It can be difficult, coming to a new hospital." He rubbed his hands up and down Ethan's arms. "And I'll make sure _you're_ okay."

* * *

Mac was sitting in the staff room. Ethan was about to go in, but Cal grabbed his arm and dragged him away.

"Careful!" said Ethan. "I don't want two injured arms!"

"Mac looks very worried," whispered Cal. "I wonder if that's his guilty conscience getting the better of him."

"He might think it's Noel," said Ethan. "And I suppose it still might be, but it seems unlikely. Mrs Beauchamp didn't tell us what the tablets in Noel's viagra box were and I think she would have mentioned it if it was relevant."

"Noel was on codeine, not tramadol," said Cal. "Though he does live with Mac so there was tramadol in the flat. He might even have been collecting Mac's prescriptions for him. I collected prescriptions for Mum – Emilie – a few times." He felt a twinge of sadness. "I had a different name and address, but they handed them over quite happily."

There was answering sadness in Ethan's eyes and he swallowed before responding. "If Noel went to a pharmacy on the other side of Holby, they might even believe he _was_ Mac."

"Not that I want to widen our suspect list or anything," said Cal, "but do any of our other suspects live with anyone? Jacob and Louise live alone. Lily used to."

"Lily still does," confirmed Ethan. "I'm not sure about David."

Cal saw Robyn in the distance and hurried after her, Ethan following rather more carefully. "Robyn, does David live alone?"

A sad look came to Robyn's face. "Yeah, he does. I've asked him if he wants to come and live with me, Max and Jez, but he said he was happy living on his own. How could anyone be happy on their own?"

"I was very happy on my own until Cal forced his way in," said Ethan pointedly.

Cal put his arm around him. "But you love living with me now!"

"That's actually open to question," said Ethan - but he didn't sound very convincing.

"Ethan…" said Robyn, "have you, you know, hurt yourself? You know, um, below your tummy?"

"Um… I'm really sorry, Robyn, but we need to get on," said Ethan.

* * *

They returned to the staff room. Big Mac hadn't moved.

Ethan sat beside him. "Are you all right, Mac?"

Mac jumped. "Yes. Yes, of course I am, Ethan."

"Our investigations are going well," said Cal. "We know it's not Noel."

"I'm glad you don't think it's Noel," said Mac. "I wouldn't want anyone to think it's Noel."

"I don't suppose you know what you were doing on the afternoon when the tablets went missing?" asked Ethan gently. "Which staff members you were working with? As far as you can remember."

Mac sighed. "I think I was doing obs for Rita so I was probably everywhere. I remember a guy with stab wound. Scissors, I think. He wanted me to get his ex for him; I didn't want to get involved. I turned away and the next thing I knew, he was on the floor and the scissors had fallen out. Blood everywhere. Dr Gardner seemed to feel I'd done something; Dr Keogh thought I ought to have done something. But there was nothing I could do!" Big Mac's voice rose. "All I did was move away so I could carry on with my job."

"Hey, it's okay." Ethan put a soothing hand on Big Mac's arm. "It wasn't your fault. It's difficult in a situation like that. It happened to Cal once." He gave Cal an apologetic glance. "The patient had a knife in her leg and she pulled it out. Cal wasn't quick enough to stop her. I'm sure Dr Gardner and Dr Keogh didn't really blame you. They was just frightened of losing their patient."

Cal watched his little brother admiringly and knew he couldn't have comforted Big Mac as well as Ethan.

"I'm so sorry to remind you of it," said Ethan. "I expect it's been preying on your mind ever since. Incidents like that always do. Did the patient survive?"

"Um… yeah. Yeah, he did," said Mac.

Ethan patted his arm. "Dr Gardner and Dr Keogh might not even remember what happened. It can all go by in a sort of blur at times, as I'm sure you know. But I'm sure they wouldn't want you to blame yourself."

"It's just… horrible to see," said Mac.

Cal looked at Mac in sudden suspicion. "That patient with the thing in his leg. Wasn't he connected to the patient who had her tablets stolen?"

"Er, yes. It wasn't a patient who had the tablets stolen: it was a relative," said Big Mac. "He was her partner."

"You spoke to them then?" said Cal.

Mac hesitated. "The partner and the ex-partner were both patients. I was involved in their care and I kept an eye on their little boy."

"Did you see David?" asked Cal.

"Yes: I asked him to help with the boy. David said he couldn't because he knew the family. I didn't see him again."

"I don't suppose you didn't notice anyone in Resus who you didn't expect to see?" said Ethan. "Someone who wasn't working in Resus?"

Mac looked bewildered. "I… I don't know."

"Did you see Lily?" said Cal. "Or Louise, David or Jacob? They're our main suspects and we're checking up on their movements. Did you see any of them?"

"I…" Mac looked like he wanted to get away. "Do I have to tell you, Cal? I'm sure they had nothing to do with this. They were only involved at the beginning anyway."

"I'm afraid you really do need to tell us," said Cal.

"Why?" Big Mac got to his feet, breathing hard. "You're not the police, Cal. I don't have to tell you anything and I don't want you accusing an innocent person. Please. Just let this go."

He tried to leave, but Cal blocked his way. "An innocent person has already been accused, Mac. _Charlie_."

"I know and that's one too many already, isn't it?" Big Mac looked beseechingly at Ethan. "Don't make me give you the name. Please don't make me do that. I don't want another person in Charlie's situation because of me."


	25. Chapter 25

**InfinityAndOne** , I think Mac has come close to confessing a couple of times. If Cal and Ethan's investigations are making him feel as trapped as he felt the day he confessed to Charlie and Noel, it could happen, but I'm trying to think of a way the boys could figure it out for themselves. Thank you for your review.

 **X-Sammii-X** , David is too sensible and too nice as well - I can't see him stealing and causing someone who's in pain to suffer. Though Mac can be really kind too! Cal and Ethan did ask Lily to help them, but she is kind of taking over now! Yes, Big Mac's words could be interpreted as a confession. Thank you for your review.

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , I'm glad you like Cal and Ethan's banter - I don't like it when they have a real argument that ends with them hating each other, but I do love the moments when they wind each other up! I don't think Mac does want them to find the culprit. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , thank you for your review. I think it depends on the colleague - telling Noel was relatively easy for Mac because he's Mac's best mate and always supports him, but Cal sees Charlie as a father figure, so anything might happen if Mac tells him! Robyn's objections to celibacy are somehow so inoffensive and non-judgemental.

 **westlife4ever80** , thank you for your review. I think you're right - at the moment, Cal sees it almost as a game and hasn't considered that it might actually be very painful to find out something like that about a colleague. Ethan's more aware, but it's going to be a shock.

* * *

"If you know the name of the patient, we can probably find out who Mac meant," said Lily. "But we already know it was Louise or Jacob." She frowned thoughtfully. "Or Mac."

Cal stared at him. "It can't be Mac. If Mac was the thief, he'd have told us who it was, wouldn't he? Think about it. Whoever is behind this is happily letting Charlie take the blame. If it's Mac and he knew we were narrowing it down and he was still on the list, don't you think he's going to jump at the chance to throw suspicion onto another person?"

Ethan looked at Lily. "I do think Cal has a point. Mac had four people to choose from, but he wouldn't do it."

Lily looked startled. "Four?!"

"Um, well, Cal actually said your name and also David's," said Ethan apologetically. "I don't know why, but-"

"That was just a test!" said Cal defensively. "If Mac was lying about someone being there, he'd pick a name randomly. If he'd said Louise or Jacob, it would have proved he doesn't have a problem with dropping his colleagues in it. If he'd said Lily, we'd have known he was lying, which calls everything he's said said into question. And if he'd said David, he'd have contradicted himself, which would mean he was really tying himself in knots."

Ethan smiled slightly. "That was rather clever of you."

"Do you have to sound so surprised?"

Lily thought for a moment. "We can check the patient's file. If that is inconclusive, we can ask Dr Gardner who she was working with. But I think we need to talk to Jacob first."

* * *

Cal, Ethan and Lily managed to intercept Jacob on his way to Connie's office.

"Ah, it's Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys," said Jacob with a big smile. "Have you worked it out yet? Did I do it?"

Ethan laughed. "The Hardy Boys. That's quite clever actually."

"We would like to know what you were doing on the afternoon of 28th July," said Lily.

"The 28th July." Jacob frowned and rubbed his chin thoughtfully in a way that made it very clear he was messing about. "What was I doing?" His face broke into a smile. "Why don't _you_ tell me, Dr Knight."

Cal wished he could have told him. It would be brilliant to be able to work out what they were all doing without even questioning them.

"We would like to hear it from you, please, Staff Nurse Masters," said Lily icily.

Jacob looked at her for a moment and his smile faded. "What? You're being serious, aren't you?"

"Of course we're being serious!" said Cal.

"I thought you were just having fun," said Jacob. He looked slightly confused. "I mean, seeing as you and I, Dr Knight, were working together at the time; considering I didn't leave the patient's side until her husband arrived, just minutes before Charlie was frogmarched out of the hospital - which you'll be able to confirm from reading the feedback the patient left – I did think you were just messing around."

* * *

"You two are hopeless!" said Lily. "You were actually alibis for two of our suspects and you didn't even know."

"One day is very like another in the ED!" said Cal. "We don't all have your memory, you know."

Ethan was looking stressed. "Please don't fight. We need to decide what we're going to do next."

"Who's fighting?" said Cal.

"I'm not fighting." Lily folded her arms.

Ethan rubbed at one of his temples.

"Ethan, are you okay?" Cal knelt beside him.

"I've got a headache," said Ethan. "That's all."

Cal thought guiltily that they had been pushing Ethan pretty hard today. "Maybe you should go home, Ethan. Get some rest."

"'Get some rest'? You sound like someone in a TV hospital soap," said Ethan.

Cal tried not to smile. If Ethan was this moody, he really wasn't feeling great, but Nibbles in a mood was always funny. "Why not have a lie down in the staff room?"

Ethan glared at him. "You're not shutting me out of this, Caleb."

"Okay. You go and have a rest and I'll do some work," said Cal.

"I don't need a rest!" said Ethan huffily, but his lip was wobbling.

Lily cut in swiftly. "I have an idea. There is one place we haven't visited; one group of people we haven't talked to."

"Who?" said Cal. You mean the paramedics? I suppose they are in and out of Resus, but how would they have known that the relative had tramadol?"

"No, not the paramedics," said Lily. "But I don't think this is a job for any of us."

* * *

Robyn looked excited when Cal and Ethan approached and asked to speak to her. "Is it my turn now? My turn to be questioned?"

"No, but we want you to perform a special task for us," said Cal. "You're the only person in the whole hospital who can do it."

Robyn's eyes grew round. "What is it?"

"Meet us in Ethan's naughty cupboard in twenty minutes and we'll tell you."

Robyn backed away. "Sorry. I'm not into all that."

"Don't worry. It's nothing untoward," said Ethan. "We use the cupboard because it's private."

"Only because we're all too scared to go in there!" said Robyn.

Cal sighed. "Okay. If you don't want to do it, we'll ask someone else."

"But you'd be perfect, Robyn," said Ethan. "No-one has their finger on the pulse like you do. Some might say you're the heartbeat of the ED."

Robyn shook her head sadly. "No. Charlie is the heartbeat of the ED."

"Then come along to the naughty cupboard – and you might be able to restart the ED's heart," said Cal.

* * *

An hour later, Robyn met Cal, Ethan and Lily in the naughty cupboard with a smile on her face. Ethan had had a rest (and, Cal suspected, a nap) in the staff room and looked a bit less pressured.

"I don't need to ask you if it went well," said Cal. "I can tell from the look on your beautiful face."

Robyn blushed, and smiled even more.

"With all your experience, Dr Knight," said Lily, "I'm surprised you can't come up with a better line than that."

Cal was hurt. "What was wrong with it? It worked, didn't it? Okay, Robyn. The floor is yours."

"Don't worry. I'm sure that's not an invitation to lie on it with him," said Ethan.

"It had better not be," said Robyn, but she was smiling too much to be completely convincing.

Cal smiled back.

"Robyn?" said Lily, when Robyn had stared at Cal and said nothing for several seconds.

"Oh, um, sorry," said Robyn. "I went up to the dispensary like you said. I know one of the dispensers quite well: I've seen her at the pub a few times. She's always up for a gossip."

"Which dispenser is that?" said Cal.

Robyn smiled. "She's called Robyn, actually!"

"Oh, yeah," said Cal, with a smile. "I know Robyn. Intimately."

"Yeah, she was saying you never went up there anymore," said Robyn.

Cal smirked in satisfaction.

"Though only because I mentioned you specifically," said Robyn. "I think she was quite glad you don't."

It was Ethan who smiled then.

"Anyway, I asked her what you told me," said Robyn. "And she says the only doctor who regularly visits the dispensary in person is you, Ethan."

Cal raised an eyebrow. "Oh, yeah, Nibbles?"

"She's seen Elle two or three times and Lily was up there recently too – first time she'd seen you for ages, Lily - but she hasn't seen Cal, Dylan or Mrs Beauchamp for months," said Robyn.

"It's possible they went up when she wasn't working," said Lily.

"No: she checked on the computer and everything," said Robyn. "It's all logged."

"What about the nurses?" said Cal.

"Oh, they all go up there except Rita, Charlie and David," said Robyn. "I suppose David's too shy and Rita and Charlie are too important. Big Mac goes up there the most often out of the HCAs."

Cal's eyes met Ethan's. "If David's never been to the dispensary, it can't be him."

"He could have taken it from a trolley – but everything we've heard about David shows he isn't maximising his opportunities," said Ethan. "It's not proof of innocence, but it is suggestive. Anyone who'd steal from a relative clearly grabs their opportunities. The psychology is wrong."

"What about Louise?" said Cal, once he'd finished rolling his eyes at Ethan's detective talk.

"She goes up quite a lot," said Robyn. "So does Jacob." She started to look worried. "You don't mean you suspect _Louise_?"

"We… we haven't ruled her out yet," said Ethan. "I don't suppose it is her, but we can't rule anyone out until we have evidence."

"Oh, no, I suppose not," said Robyn. "But I'm sure it's not Louise. Or David. Or Max obviously. Or anyone really."

"Thanks, for your help, Robyn," said Cal, smiling. "You've helped us a lot."

Robyn smiled nervously. "So, do you suspect me?"

"Not of stealing tramadol," said Cal. "Stealing hearts is another matter."

* * *

Cal gave Elle his most winning smile. "Elle. We need a favour."

"That sounds ominous," said Elle.

"You know the incident recently where one guy stuck a pair of scissors in another guy's leg?"

Elle nodded. "Yes, that one did stick in my mind. A dramatic day even by our standards."

"We were wondering who else was involved in the care of the two patients," said Cal.

"Ah. For your investigation," said Elle. Her eyes shone with amusement, but her face was otherwise calm.

"That's right," said Cal. "Or, to put it another way, were Lily, Jacob, Louise, David or Big Mac involved?"

Elle thought for a moment. "None of them were involved directly. Big Mac was checking obs when the scissors fell out of the patient's leg. I asked David to help, but he said he knew the family and thought it better not to get involved. Louise was there at the beginning, but she wasn't involved in the treatment – I think I asked her to get someone for me. Who were the others? Lily and Jacob? I remember Lily coming into Resus and asking for you, Ethan, which I thought was a bit odd, but that might have been another day."


	26. Chapter 26

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. I'm not following events in the show completely, so you'll have to wait and see! You'll find out who Cal and Ethan suspect most in this chapter.

 **X-Sammii-X** , I'm sorry you had a bad weekend. Sometimes they can end only one way. I hope this week was better for you. I love to see Cal looking out for Ethan too - it's more often the other way round! Robyn is so lovely. I didn't want her to be a suspect, but I wanted to involve her in some way. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , thank you for your review. Lily does give things a different angle - Cal sees it as a game and Ethan can be held back by caution and worries, but Lily sees a situation clearly yet can distance herself from it. I'm glad you know Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys - I wasn't sure if anyone would have read them.

 **InfinityAndOne** , the dispensary idea does seem to confirm that it's very unlikely David is the thief, but there is quite a bit of evidence against Lily, so it's lucky they've ruled her out! I didn't think Cal would be able to get through the whole story without a bit of flirting. Thank you for your review.

 **westlife4ever80** , I'm glad you're enjoying all the stress and excitement! I think Cal is too and Lily is thriving on it in her own way, but perhaps not Ethan quite so much. Thank you for your review.

 _Thank you to **Snowdrop2018** for the follow._

* * *

"I'm not so sure this is a good idea," said Ethan as he and Cal sat in the naughty cupboard.

Cal couldn't believe it. He'd explained this to Ethan so many times. "Ethan, it's a brilliant idea! In fact, it's so brilliant, I'm amazed _you_ haven't thought of it!"

Ethan put his head in his uninjured hand. "Cal, it's too dangerous. If someone's an addict and they've been deprived of tramadol, how are they going to be able to resist it?"

Cal sighed. "That is kind of the point! They _won't_ resist it. They'll grab the tablets and run."

"And we'll have supplied tramadol to an addict. Great idea, Caleb."

"But _we'll know who they are_ ," said Cal significantly. "Listen, Ethan. The suspect walks in and sees a box of tramadol sitting on the table. Right?"

"Right," said Ethan.

"If there's someone else in the room, you don't have to do anything," said Cal. "It's not likely they'd steal it with half the ED watching. But if they're on their own, all you have to do is film them on your phone. Okay?"

Ethan nodded. "With you so far."

"You wait till they've left the room," said Cal. "Then you roll out from under the sofa, go to Mrs Beauchamp, show her the video and we've got our tramadol thief."

"Okay," said Ethan. "So what happens when someone who's not the thief walks into the staff room, sees a box of tramadol and decides to confiscate it?"

Cal looked at him blankly. "Why would they do that?"

"Perhaps because there's a tramadol addict in the department and it's not safe to leave it lying around?" There was more than a hint of sarcasm in Ethan's voice.

Cal sighed. Why did Ethan always have to make difficulties? "You won't have left it unattended. You'll be there the whole time."

"Okay, and what reason do I give for being under the sofa?"

"Oh, I don't know!" said Cal impatiently. "Say you dropped something or that you were trying to get over your claustrophobia or something."

"Fine!" said Ethan. "I'm sure that won't seem at all weird."

"Not if it's you, no!" said Cal.

Ethan shook his head. "It's never going to work. How am I even supposed to get under there with my bad shoulder?"

"You can lie on your back," said Cal.

"Lie on my back," said Ethan. "Great."

Cal sighed. "Oh, come on, Ethan. At least give it a try. All our suspects are working today – I know we've pretty much ruled out Lily, Jacob and David, but they'll have their opportunity too and we'll see what happens."

Ethan looked shocked. "Do you mean we're not going to tell Lily about this? But she's been helping us. She's been brilliant! And she's really not short of tramadol."

Cal put his hand on Ethan's shoulder. "I realised something last night, Ethan. Those boxes Lily showed us. We saw the boxes and the dates and they were full, but we didn't really look properly. We saw they were full of blister packs, but we took Lily's word for it that the blister packs were full of tramadol."

Ethan's eyes widened. "You're right. I didn't think of that. And Elle said Lily came into Resus, looking for me, and she made an unexpected visit to the dispensary too..."

"So Lily goes back on the suspects list," said Cal with a sigh. "I honestly think it's Louise, but we need more proof."

"I think it's Big Mac," admitted Ethan in a quiet voice.

Cal stared at him. "No way! Mac's not the type."

"Are you saying Louise is?" said Ethan. "Just because she can hurt people's feelings, that doesn't mean she's a thief. Louise tells it like it is – if anything, that suggests honesty rather than dishonesty."

"Yeah, maybe… but _Mac_?" said Cal. He felt almost upset. Big Mac wasn't the brightest or the coolest or the best-looking – that was Ethan, Cal and Cal – but he'd always seemed like a good guy.

"I keep thinking about something he said to us yesterday," said Ethan. "About how he doesn't want another person to be in Charlie's position because of him."

Cal waited, but Ethan didn't continue. "Well? What's wrong with that? I wouldn't want anyone to be in Charlie's position because of me either."

"No, but there are two ways you could interpret it," said Ethan. "He could mean he doesn't want to see someone else in Charlie's position and it would be even worse if he knew he was the cause of it."

Cal nodded impatiently.

"Or perhaps the 'because of me' is part of what he doesn't want repeated," said Ethan. "Because the situation with Charlie happened because of him."

Cal frowned, trying to make sense of it. "There's no point in fussing about grammar, Ethan. Not everyone uses correct grammar, especially not when they talk."

"It's more a matter of logical semantics than grammar," said Ethan. "And the sentence is ambiguous."

Cal decided to tease Ethan about the long words later. Preferably after he'd looked up 'logical semantics' in a dictionary. "But if Mac's done it, don't you think he's going to be extra careful what he says?"

"Possibly," said Ethan. "But you saw him, Cal. He was so stressed, he might not have known what he was saying." He sighed. "But you're right. It's a good point."

Cal punched the air. "Nibbles said I made a good point!"

Ethan gave a reluctant smile. "You did. You made a good point about Lily too."

"So maybe I'm also right about Louise – and right about this being a good idea!" said Cal.

Cal could tell Ethan was wavering. "Okay," said Ethan at last. "We'll give it a try. Are we going to tell Mrs Beauchamp what we're doing?"

"Um… I would say no," said Cal.

The expected frown appeared on Ethan's face.

"I think Mrs Beauchamp will think it's a great idea," said Cal, "but because she's clinical lead, she might feel duty-bound to tell us we can't do it. I don't think we should put her in such an awkward position."

"Hmm," said Ethan doubtfully, but he made no other comment.

In Cal's opinion, that was a win. "I'll go first."

"Make sure you don't fall asleep under there," said Ethan.

"You seriously think I could sleep when we're about to catch a thief?"

"Honestly?" said Ethan. "Yes."

* * *

Cal had to admit Ethan had a point.

He'd only been under here for twenty minutes and he was struggling to keep his eyes open. It was so boring and he hadn't slept much last night because he'd been busy planning.

He had seen a couple of people. Rita had stuck her head in and then gone out again, apparently without seeing the tramadol. Jacob had got something from his locker. Robyn and Louise had come in together, giggled about something a patient had done, and then gone out again. If Louise had noticed the tramadol, she'd shown no signs of it.

But addicts, of course, were good at hiding the signs.

Cal let his eyes drift closed, only to jerk awake and hit his head on the bottom of the sofa. He couldn't quite bite back a cry of pain, but luckily, no-one was in the room.

 _But is the tramadol still there?_ Cal thought in sudden panic. _If I've lost Ethan's tramadol, he'll kill me! And then Mrs Beauchamp will fire me._

He was almost afraid to look, but he finally made himself do it.

The tramadol was still sitting on the counter.

Cal closed his eyes in relief, then quickly opened them again. He really didn't want to do anything that involved closing his eyes.

But it was so boring and he had stayed up very late …

* * *

Cal jerked awake again.

At first, he wasn't sure where he was, but then he realised. He was under the sofa in the staff room, trying to catch a thief.

And someone was in the room, standing at the counter.

Lily.

Cal held his breath as she picked up the box.

Cal remembered his phone. Where was it? He was supposed to be making a video of Lily! He was sure he had his phone out ready. Ethan had insisted on it.

Lily went to the sink and poured a glass of water.

Oh God, not Lily. Ethan was going to be so upset.

But if it was Lily, why had she given them so much help? Why had she narrowed down the suspect list for them?

Lily sat on the sofa and opened the box of tramadol.

Cal held his breath. Was she just going to take the tramadol now? What should he do? He still couldn't find his phone. Should he just confront her?

"Dr Knight, if you don't want to be seen, I suggest that you breathe considerably more quietly and try not to leave your foot sticking out," said Lily. "And it might help if you stop groaning too."

"It's your fault I'm groaning!" said Cal. "You made me jump and I hit my head!" He rolled out from under the sofa. "What are you doing with that tramadol, Lily?"

Lily looked almost as though she might smile. "Teasing you."

"Teasing me?" said Cal.

"When I entered the staff room just now, two things stood out as being out of place," said Lily. "The box of tramadol and your foot. I was curious to see what you might do if I removed the tramadol. Apparently, not very much."

"I couldn't find my phone to video you," said Cal.

"Then you must look for it while I return the tramadol to the counter," said Lily.

Cal got down on the floor again and looked under the sofa. Somehow, his phone had got pushed right back against the wall. By the time he'd got it out, the tramadol was sitting on the counter again.

"I will leave you to it," said Lily. "I am not entirely convinced your plan will work, but good luck."


	27. Chapter 27

**X-Sammii-X** , I'm sorry you had another bad week. They often come one after another. I hope my updates are providing a distraction, if nothing else. I liked the way they used the video camera in the episode, but I wanted to make Cal suffer a bit more! But I do love him really. He'd be much happier if he had a girl with him, but I don't think he'd be able to keep very quiet! Thank you for your review.

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. I really like Cal and Lily scenes - I think Lily is better-suited to Ethan in a romantic way, but I think Cal and Lily have an interesting friendship because she's so good at putting him in his place and I think he respects her for that.

 **Tanith Panic** , I agree that Lily is very witty - she's a bit like Connie, except that Connie isn't afraid to show warmth and Lily can push things a bit further as she's not clinical lead. Louise can be funny too, but she makes me gasp more than she makes me laugh! I think the writers have done a good job of creating three strong, sarcastic women who are completely different. Thank you for your review.

 **InfinityAndOne** , I'm glad you won't tire of the 'naughty cupboard' - because I don't think I will either! I only wish I'd been the one to think of it. The plan didn't work with Lily, but I'm sure Cal will be careful of his foot in future and the other suspects probably aren't as intelligent. Thank you for your review.

* * *

Cal checked the time on his phone again. It had to be Ethan's turn soon. He'd been under here for hours.

At least _one_ hour, anyway.

Or, according to his phone, twenty minutes?

No, that couldn't be right. It had been much longer than that, Cal was sure. His phone must have stopped working properly. It couldbe either the atmosphere under the sofa or an issue with phone reception.

The atmosphere under the sofa wasn't very nice, Cal had to admit. In all honesty, he wasn't sure that letting Ethan hide under here was a good idea. It was dusty and Cal had had to stifle a few sneezes. Ethan was much more sensitive to dust than Cal and he'd be sneezing the whole time. This wouldn't only be very unpleasant for Ethan, it also meant it would be very difficult for him to keep his presence a secret.

But if he didn't let Ethan come under here… Cal groaned silently. If Ethan wasn't going to do his part of the plan, either Cal would have to be under here all day or they'd have to forget the whole thing.

And it was such a good plan too.

 _A stroke of genius, in fact_ , thought Cal, smiling to himself and feeling slightly better about the whole thing.

He stopped smiling as footsteps approached. He lay on his side, his phone in position, and pressed record. He watched as a pair of scrubs-clad legs walked into the room.

 _No: not good enough!_ thought Cal. He tilted the phone slightly, letting the lens travel up the person's legs. Cal felt quite excited, but he hoped that was more to do with the fact that he might be about to catch the thief then because he was getting turned on. He was almost sure the legs were male.

The lens travelled upwards. Cal could only see the back of the person's head, but he still knew.

It was one of his suspects. One he'd all but ruled out, but even so, Cal would continue with the recording.

He still wasn't sure how David could have taken the tramadol either from the relative or the dispensary, but he'd watched enough TV detective shows to know that criminals could be very clever.

Hopefully not as clever as Cal though.

David was standing at the counter. He glanced round, then he picked up the box and looked at it. He looked around the room rather uneasily for a second time, then he tried to put the box into his pocket. It wouldn't fit, so he transferred a few things from one pocket to another.

David had another look around before putting the box into his pocket. Then he turned and left the room.

Cal waited until he was out of the room before pressing the button to end the recording. His heart was thumping.

His idea had worked! He'd actually caught the thief in the act!

He eased out from under the sofa, grimacing as he discovered so many of his muscles had seized up, and slowly stood up, stretching his arms and legs.

Cal waited for the elation to fill him, but to his surprise, it didn't. He was gutted it was David. Completely gutted. David was such a nice guy and he'd been through far too much already. He didn't need this– but what choice did Cal have? If he let David get away with this, then Charlie would be blamed forever.

With a sigh, Cal left the staff room and went off to find Ethan. He didn't want to leave Ethan out of this and in all honesty, he wanted to talk to his brother before he handed the evidence to Connie. Maybe Ethan would have some sort of idea of how Charlie could be cleared of blame without any being attached to David.

 _Maybe I could go to Connie and tell her I'm the thief_ , thought Cal. Then Charlie would be in the clear and David wouldn't have to deal with anything else.

But he knew that wouldn't work. Even if Cal was willing to give up his job, Charlie would never keep quiet if another innocent person was taking the blame. Neither would Ethan. They were both too loyal. That was what had got Charlie into this mess in the first place.

But Cal found he didn't blame Charlie. Secretly, in the back of his mind, he'd always thought the nurse was being too soft-hearted in taking the blame, but Cal realised he was feeling quite soft-hearted himself. David wasn't a bad person. He was an unhappy, mixed-up person who had been through hell and was understandably still struggling to deal with it.

In fact, he was a bit like Rita – and Cal could only hope that David would be given a lot more understanding and support than Rita had so far.

It was possible David had no idea he was doing it, after all. Cal was sure he had some sort of mental health condition - it could be dissociative identity disorder or something like that.

 _Ethan will know what to do_ , thought Cal, as he left the staff room in search of his brother. _He'll know how to help David._

* * *

Cal had a bit of trouble finding Ethan. He had no idea where he was working today. He was relieved when he finally saw his brother's blond head, but then he realised he was speaking to David. Cal edged closer so he could listen.

"Ethan, I was wondering whether I might speak to you," said David. "Privately."

Cal only just managed to hold back a gasp. Was David going to confess?

"Yes, of course," said Ethan at once. "Would you like to follow me to my cupboard?"

As they turned, they saw Cal. Ethan looked at Cal, a silent question in his eyes. Cal just said: "I'll come with you if that's okay."

Ethan nodded. David hesitated before doing the same. The little procession walked silently to the cupboard and the three of them went inside.

"I didn't want to say this in front of anyone else," said David. "It is a bit of a sensitive subject."

 _And then some!_ thought Cal.

"Of course: you can tell me anything you need to," said Ethan kindly.

David reached into his pocket and took out the tramadol. "You left this in the staff room."

"Oh… um… did I?" said Ethan. "Thank you."

"I thought… considering what's been happening… you'd want it in your possession or in your locker," said David quietly.

"Yes: I think you're absolutely right," said Ethan warmly. "Thank you so much, David."

They said a few more words, then David left.

Cal slowly lifted his eyes to Ethan's. "I thought it was him, Ethan. I made a film and everything."

Ethan looked anxiously at Cal. "You didn't show the film to Mrs Beauchamp, did you?"

"Luckily, I decided to come and speak to you first." Cal groaned. "I feel so stupid. Obviously someone like David wouldn't want to leave tramadol lying around. That's much more likely than him being the thief! He's not the type and it's pretty much impossible anyway!"

"Well… it's always a good idea to have a trial run," said Ethan. "Shall we watch the video now and see how well it came out? Then, if there's anything that isn't quite right, we can put it right for next time."

* * *

The video, to Cal's relief, was perfect.

"Do you think we can rule David out completely now?" said Ethan hopefully.

He looked like a little boy and Cal hated the thought of disappointing him. "Well… what do _you_ think, Ethan?"

The hope in Ethan's eyes faded. "Perhaps you can't ever rule someone out completely. It almost certainly isn't David because the chances of him knowing about the tramadol and then having the chance to take it are almost non-existent. But the fact he brought it to me doesn't prove very much. He might have guessed it was a trick."

Cal wondered guiltily if his foot had been sticking out again.

"Or maybe he's stopped taking it now," said Ethan. "Charlie might be helping him with that. Or maybe he brought it to me so it wasn't going to be sitting there, tempting him."

"Yeah: if he took some recently, he might have brought it to you before the urges kicked in," said Cal.

"But I really don't think it could be him," said Ethan.

Cal could only agree. "My instincts say no. Your instincts say no. The evidence says it would be pretty much impossible. But probably the only thing that can rule him out completely is when we get the evidence to prove it's someone else." He checked the tramadol was safely in his pocket. "I'd better get back to the staff room."

"Are you okay to go back under the sofa?" said Ethan. "I could have my turn now if you'll take over my patients."

Cal shook his head. "I'm fine – but I'm not sure you should go under there at all, to be honest, Nibbles. It's pretty dusty. You'll need lots of tissues. And every time you sneeze, you'll hurt your shoulder."

"I could always use a dustpan and brush," said Ethan.

"A dustpan and _what_?" said Cal. He'd heard of it vaguely, but he hadn't seen one for months. If they had one at home, he had no idea where it was kept.

"It's a way of sweeping up dust," said Ethan. "There's one in the staff room. I'll come with you now and show you what to do."

"Oh. That sounds like housework," said Cal. "I think I'd rather sneeze than do housework."

Ethan smiled. "I've noticed."

"But I suppose I can make an exception," said Cal. "Some girls find it sexy when men do housework."

"I've always thought it was fair to split the chores," said Ethan. He looked serious. "Though I won't be able to do it forever, Cal. When my symptoms start, I might need help."

"As soon as your symptoms start, it'll be my turn," said Cal. "And if I let you do everything for as long as you can, you won't have to feel guilty about it."

Ethan actually smiled, if unwillingly. "Um, thanks. I think. But you don't have to do it, Cal. I can get a carer."

"No need. You've already got one," said Cal. "Forever."

Ethan's eyes filled with tears.

"Ethan? What's wrong?"

"You're right, Cal," said Ethan as he searched his pockets.

"Right about you having a carer? Of course I am."

"No," said Ethan. "You're right about me needing tissues."

Cal rubbed his back. "I'm sorry, Ethan. I didn't mean to upset you."

Ethan took his glasses off and dabbed his eyes. "You didn't. You actually made me feel… well, happy, I suppose. I'm sorry. I'm okay now." He put his glasses back on, looking slightly embarrassed. "Are you going to go back then?"

"In a minute," said Cal. He gave Ethan a hug. "In a minute."


	28. Chapter 28

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , I love it when Cal is there for Ethan too. I hope George will stay for a long time, but symptoms can begin at aged 30. Depending on which DOB you believe, Ethan is either 31 or a month away from his 30th birthday. So it could begin at any time. George will act it beautifully, but it's going to be so sad! Thank you for your review.

 **X-Sammii-X** , thank you for your review. I wanted to make Cal and Ethan's suspicions as realistic as I could as it might have been quite frustrating to see them suspecting the wrong person for no reason. I really am happy that you almost believed it was David - it shows you're caught up in the story and that is so amazing.

 **Tanith Panic** , I didn't want to make David look bad, so having made him look guilty, I then wanted to make him look innocent again! Ethan says he does all the washing up and that came as no surprise at all! I hate housework too, except cooking as that's quite creative. I'm really glad you're enjoying this. Thank you for your review.

 **Is-there-somewhere-x** , thank you for your review. I'm really glad you liked the last scene. I didn't want to move on to the next suspect just yet and I didn't want to lose sight of the fact that Ethan has been struggling emotionally, so that was what I came up with! I do love making them hug!

 **Starlight-Inspirit** , thank you for your review. I'm really glad you're enjoying this story and I hope you like the update!

 **InfinityAndOne** , Cal likes everyone to think he's tough and independent, but I always love the hints of his caring and vulnerable sides. Though in my stories, they're a bit more than hints! He'd hate if if anyone said so, but he does love Ethan so much! I'm happy you like the way I write their relationship. Thank you for your review.

 _Thank you to **Starlight-Inspirit** for the follow and favourite._

* * *

Cal was seriously beginning to regret this sofa idea. He'd only been back for fifteen minutes and he was dying.

His back was aching, his shoulders were aching, his legs were aching…

The trouble was, Cal was just too big in every way.

Ethan was a much better size for this sort of thing, but with his injuries and his dust issues, he'd probably be even more uncomfortable than Cal.

Cal really hoped the culprit would come along and incriminate himself very soon.

Any time in the next two minutes would be great.

Two minutes passed.

Another two minutes passed.

 _This is impossible!_ thought Cal. _Okay, I'm going to count to three – in my head, of course – and the person responsible for me being stuck under this sofa is going to walk into the room and pick up the tramadol._

One.

Two.

Three.

Big Mac walked into the staff room.

Cal was so amazed and shocked, he nearly forgot about making a video, but he managed to grab his phone just in time.

He pressed record just as Big Mac arrived at the counter.

Mac stood there for a moment, then he glanced around the room.

Cal decided not to take that as an indication of guilt. David had done exactly the same thing and they couldn't both be guilty.

Well, actually, they probably could. There were two known thefts so they could mean two different thieves.

But just the thought of it made Cal's head ache.

Big Mac picked up the box of tramadol and looked at it.

 _Go on_ , thought Cal. _Put it in your pocket._

 _It would mean Ethan's right and I'd wrong, but I'll take that if it means I can get out of here._

Big Mac put the tramadol back on the counter and started to make a cup of tea.

Cal groaned. Why couldn't he just take it? The longer he left it, the more chance there was of being caught.

He waited.

Big Mac made the cup of tea.

Big Mac drank the cup of tea.

Big Mac left without the tramadol.

Cal stopped the video and pounded his fists against the floor a couple of times, but he couldn't move his arms enough to get any real satisfaction out of it.

But then he remembered something that put the smile right back on his face.

Ethan had been convinced Big Mac was the thief. Cal had disagreed.

This video proved Cal was right and Ethan was wrong.

* * *

Cal was aching and bored when Ethan entered the staff room half an hour later, but he still managed to feel a little bit smug.

He couldn't wait to tell Ethan he was wrong.

"Bit early for a break, isn't it?" he said, as Ethan made his way towards the sofa.

Cal hoped no-one would come in and catch Ethan talking to the sofa.

Then he hoped someone would because it would be really funny.

Ethan sat on the sofa. "I remembered something Honey told me."

Cal looked at Ethan's feet in concern. "Ethan, you're not still thinking about Honey, are you?"

"Not in _that_ way," Ethan reassured him. "I was thinking about Big Mac, actually. Um, also not in _that_ way."

Cal started to feel smug again.

Ethan continued. "I remember saying to Honey once what a lovely guy Mac is and she said: 'Yes… but he's not entirely honest'."

"No, she didn't," said Cal.

Ethan sounded startled. "Yes, she did!"

"Keep your voice down, Nibbles," said Cal. "You're not seriously telling me that Honey used the word 'entirely'."

"Okay, maybe I'm paraphrasing," said Ethan impatiently. "Would you like me to tell you about Honey's evidence for this observation or would you rather continue to annoy me?"

"I'm listening," said Cal.

"Honey told me that Big Mac had some money problems a while back. He couldn't afford to buy food or pay his rent – so he stole food from the foodbank."

Cal tried to sit up. "Ow!"

"Cal, are you all right?"

"No! You made me hit my head!" said Cal crossly. "That's the second time I've done that."

"I'm sorry," said Ethan sincerely. "Would you like me to have a look at it for you?"

"No, I'm fine," said Cal grumpily. "But you know what? I'd be more inclined to doubt Honey's word than Big Mac."

Ethan sighed and got back onto the sofa. "I suppose if a woman can say I'm hot, she can probably say anything."

"You are hot!" said Cal at once.

"Um… thank you, Caleb. I think."

"I mean…" Cal decided the sofa situation did have its advantages. It meant Ethan couldn't see he was blushing. "I mean don't put yourself down. You've got me to do that for you."

Ethan sounded unhappy. "But it doesn't look good for Mac, does it? I hate being right sometimes."

Cal immediately felt a bit better. "Actually, little brother, you're wrong. Have a look at this." He passed Ethan his phone. "Watch the whole thing, _then_ tell me what you think."

Ethan sat back on the sofa and watched the film. Cal heard his intake of breath, presumably when Big Mac picked up the tramadol, but he obediently said nothing. At last, he sighed, and reached under the sofa to hand the phone back to Cal.

"What do you think?" said Cal.

"Well, he wasn't behaving like an addict," said Ethan. "An addict would have taken it and got out of there. Or put it in his locker or something."

Cal couldn't help being a little bit smug. "I knew it wasn't Mac."

"You didn't _know_ , Caleb. You _suspected_ ," said Ethan. "But I have to admit it does seem unlikely now. So I suppose if we are excluding Jacob – and the evidence certainly suggests we should – it's Louise or Lily."

Cal stopped feeling smug. "Louise or… Lily. Yes."

"Obviously, neither of them have been in here yet – but I'm sure they will," said Ethan.

Cal closed his eyes. _I really hope Louise comes in and incriminates herself soon. I don't want to have to tell Ethan about Lily._

"Caleb?" said Ethan, a note of suspicion in his voice.

"What?" said Cal, as innocently as he could.

"Have Louise and Lily been in here?"

Cal tried to laugh. "Don't you think I'd have made a video if they had?"

"You tell me," said Ethan.

Cal put his head in his hands. How did Ethan always know? He wasn't even _looking_ at Cal and he knew.

"Cal, you do need to tell me," said Ethan.

"Why?" said Cal.

"Because we're supposed to be doing this together," said Ethan. "And if you've messed it up with even one person, perhaps I should be trying to think of a Plan B."

Cal groaned.

Ethan's voice softened. "Come on, Cal. You can tell me. Did you forget to make the video?"

"Louise came in with Robyn, so there was no need," said Cal.

"And Lily?"

He never gave up, that boy. "I… I couldn't find my phone," said Cal. "It had got right back against the wall somehow."

"There. That wasn't so bad, was it?" said Ethan. "And as Lily didn't take it, we can probably rule her out."

Cal said nothing.

"Caleb?" Ethan's voice had sharpened with suspicion again.

"She… she saw my foot sticking out," confessed Cal miserably. "She guessed the plan."

"Cal, you complete and utter…" Ethan stopped. "Well… at least she let you know what was wrong. If Lily's not the thief, she did you a favour by pointing that out."

"But if she is the thief?" said Cal.

"Then we're definitely going to need a Plan B," said Ethan.

* * *

Cal was getting nervous.

Soon, everyone was going to start coming in for their coffee break and there was no way they were going to miss the tramadol sitting there.

If Louise came in before then and took the tramadol, then everything would be okay. The thief would be caught and the tramadol could go back into Ethan's locker.

If she didn't… Cal was beginning to see the pitfalls now. Ethan definitely had a point about the tramadol potentially being confiscated. Rita would certainly remove it if she found it – though whether she would put it in her own office or Connie's remained to be seen. Robyn would probably decide she had to hand it in to Rita or find Ethan.

But there was something far worse than that: something Cal had only just realised.

If the wrong person found it, _Ethan_ could get into trouble for leaving his medication lying around.

Cal couldn't let that happen.

He started to come out from under the sofa, only to stop when he heard footsteps.

Cal moved carefully back under the sofa and picked up his phone. A moment later, he was glad he had.

Louise had just entered the room – and she was making straight for the tramadol.

Cal watched as Louise picked it up and put it in her pocket . Then she collected a bag from her locker and left the staff room.

Cal finished filming her exit (and it was quite an enjoyable exit, particularly now she'd changed out of her scrubs), then he started to get out from under the sofa.

Or he tried to.

Cal didn't know what had happened. His muscles had gone stiff for being squashed into a cramped environment for so long, but he was sure he ought to be able to get some movement out of them. The pain didn't matter – he'd found the thief and now he had to catch her before she disappeared with Ethan's painkillers.

But it wasn't working. He couldn't move

"No!" shouted Cal, not caring if anyone heard him now. He'd caught the thief. Nothing else mattered.

All the same, he was a little bit embarrassed when Jacob walked in. "Cal, what are you doing?"

"Can you see me?" asked Cal.

"I can see your foot," said Jacob. "What are you doing under there?"

"Trying to get out," said Cal.

Jacob bent down beside the sofa. "Yeah, I get that. But what are you doing under there in the first place?" He burst into hearty laughter. "Oh, I get it! You're spying, aren't you?"

"Just get me out of here!" said Cal. "Um, please?"

"Now, let me see." Jacob smiled as he considered it.

"Jacob!" said Cal desperately.

"I'm just trying to work out the least painful way of doing it," said Jacob.

Cal had to admit 'least painful' sounded good, but he was desperate. "I don't care about the pain! Just get me out of here!"

"Whatever you say, Sherlock."

"Aaarrrgh!" screamed Cal as he was pulled out from under the sofa. He stretched his arms, legs and back, and finally managed to drag himself to his feet. "Thanks, Jacob. I don't suppose you can do me another favour and tell me where Louise is?"

"Probably on her way home by now," said Jacob. "Her wrist was really hurting so she couldn't finish her shift."


	29. Chapter 29

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , it's not often Ethan is wrong! Especially not when Cal is right. Either way, Louise probably isn't going to have a very good time in this chapter. Thank you for your review.

 **X-Sammii-X** , Cal is very big and the sofas aren't very wide, so I don't think it would be easy at all for him to hide under there, but he can also be a little bit careless. I definitely agree with you and Cal about Ethan being hot. You'll hear Louise's side of the story in this chapter. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , thank you for your review. Cal is too big, too long - too everything! I'm so glad you're still finding this entertaining after so long. It was only supposed to have two or three chapters! I'm really not good at keeping it brief. I love it when Cal tries to protect Ethan, though it's not often Ethan allows himself to be protected.

 **InfinityAndOne** , thank you for your review. I think Cal will always manage to find some enjoyment in the fact he was right and Ethan was wrong! Assuming he is right, of course. That's very true - although Louise's need for tramadol might be legitimate, they belonged to Ethan, not her.

* * *

Ethan's eyes widened when he saw Cal coming towards him. "Are you okay?"

"Just a bit stiff," said Cal.

Ethan sighed. "Very professional, Caleb."

"I don't know what _you_ mean, Nibbles, but I mean my _muscles_ are stiff," said Cal. "It's cramped under that sofa." He took Ethan's arm. "Come on: we have to go."

"Where?" said Ethan. He lowered his voice. "You mean you've… _seen_ something?"

"Yeah. I'll explain on the way." Cal's muscles were still aching as he steered Ethan towards the exit. "Louise took the tramadol. I got it on film, but when I tried to follow her, my muscles had cramped up and I… um…" Cal sighed. "I couldn't get out from under the sofa. Eventually, Jacob came in and helped me. He told me Rita gave Louise permission to go home because her wrist was hurting."

"And she's taken my tramadolr," said Ethan.

"Um… yeah," said Cal awkwardly. "Sorry about that."

"Don't worry," said Ethan. "It's not your fault. Let's go and tell Mrs Beauchamp."

Cal looked at him, disappointed. "Do you think we need to tell Mrs Beauchamp?"

Ethan nodded. "I really think we do. Apart from anything else, I'm supposed to be working."

Cal reluctantly decided he was right. He didn't want to get Ethan into trouble.

Not that it had ever bothered him too much before… but things were different now.

Connie took forever to answer the door. Cal got impatient and reached out to open it anyway, but Ethan caught his hand. " _No_ , Caleb."

"Come in!" called Connie.

"We've done it, Mrs Beauchamp!" said Cal. "We've caught the tramadol thief."

Connie looked surprised, then doubtful. "Are you sure?"

"Completely sure!" said Cal. "We caught her in the act. Look at this." He found the video and showed it to Connie.

Connie actually almost looked shocked. She put her hand firmly over the screen. "Dr Knight. I really don't think that's the video you meant to show me."

Cal looked at the video and gasped in horror. "Oh God, no, I didn't mean to show you that one! Sorry." He quickly found the correct one. "There."

Connie viewed the video in silence. "We can't be sure Louise took the tramadol for her own personal use."

"Yeah, we can," said Cal. "She's just gone home. Her wrist is 'hurting too much for her to work'. Your boyfriend just told me."

Connie just looked at him.

"Um, 'Senior Staff Nurse Masters told me' is what I meant to say, Mrs Beauchamp."

"I should think so too," said Connie, and moved on, much to Cal's relief. "Are you ready for a little trip?"

Ethan looked at her in shock. "You mean… leave the ED?"

"I'm certainly not suggesting we get high on drugs, Dr Hardy."

"Oh… no. Of course not. No."

"Then I suggest you stop dawdling and follow me."

* * *

It wasn't far to Louise's house. Connie rang the doorbell while Cal and Ethan stood either side of her. Cal found he was excited and a little bit nervous, but he hoped the latter wouldn't show.

Ethan reached behind Connie's back and touched Cal's arm.

Cal told himself that was definitely a request for reassurance rather than an attempt to comfort him. He patted Ethan's hand and smiled.

Ethan smiled back.

"I'm sure Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson don't need to hold hands," said Connie, as she rang the bell again.

Cal told himself he wasn't freaked out. After all, _everyone_ knew Connie had eyes in the back of her head.

Finally, Louise wrenched the door open. "What?" Then she registered who her visitors were. "Oh, hi, Mrs Beauchamp. Is everything okay?."

"May we come in, please?" said Connie.

"Um… yeah. Course," said Louise, her eyes meeting Cal's for a moment before skittering away.

 _I'm not surprised you're nervous_ , _you little thief_ , thought Cal.

Then he felt guilty. Louise wasn't really a thief. She was an addict – she had an illness.

Louise showed them into the living room. Connie seated herself elegantly on an armchair while Louise perched on the edge of the matching one, holding an ice pack to her wrist. Cal and Ethan chose the sofa.

"Rita said I could go home," said Louise, a bit defensively. "My wrist was hurting."

"That's fine," said Connie. "That's Sister Freeman's decision and nothing to do with me. Louise, when you left the hospital, are you sure you didn't take something with you?"

Louise looked startled. "No. I don't think so. Well, I took my bag."

"Are you sure you wouldn't like to think about that more carefully?"

Louise looked at Cal and Ethan in an excellent imitation of confusion. "What else would I have taken?"

"A box of tramadol, maybe?" said Cal.

He regretted speaking when Connie glared at him.

"Oh, right, yeah!" said Louise. "I thought you meant something I brought home."

 _Very convincing_ , thought Cal.

"What did you do with the box?" asked Connie pleasantly.

"I gave it to Rita," said Louise. She looked at Ethan. "They were yours actually. I asked her to give them back to you. I didn't think you'd want them hanging round the staff room with a tramadol thief..." Shock came into her face. "Oh my God. You think I'm the thief, don't you?"

"You were seen taking the box of tramadol," said Connie. "Naturally, we were concerned."

"It's not me!" said Louise. "Seriously, go and check with Rita. She'll tell you. I've only got one box of tramadol in the flat. You can check if you like."

Connie thought for a moment. "Very well, Louise. I'll go and speak to Rita. Assuming she confirms what you say, I'm very sorry for bothering you. Clearly it was a misunderstanding."

Ethan bit his lip and looked terrified. Cal tried to look cool, but he wasn't sure he managed it.

"Can I just ask: how did you know I took it?" said Louise, confused. "There wasn't anyone else there."

"Let's not worry about that for now," said Connie. "Thank you for your assistance, Louise. I hope we won't have to bother you again – and I hope your wrist is better soon."

* * *

Rita was looking through some files when they arrived. "Ethan, there you are. Mrs Dace in Cubicle 2-"

"Dr Hardy was with me," said Connie, much to Ethan's relief. "Can we have a word, please, Rita?"

Rita looked nervous. She shuffled the files together and left them on the desk. "Sure. Yes. Of course."

Cal found himself walking quite naturally towards the naughty cupboard. Connie raised an eyebrow but made no objection. The best thing was the look on Max's face when he saw the four of them disappearing into the cupboard together.

Cal did a discreet thumbs-up behind Connie's back.

"I saw that, Dr Knight," said Connie.

 _God, she's scary. I'm glad I'm not the tramadol thief._

Connie waited till they were all inside the cupboard and Ethan had shut the door. "Rita. I understand Louise has just gone home injured."

Rita nodded. "That's right. Her wrist was hurting. I'm sorry if that makes things more difficult for your doctors, but it was my decision, Connie."

Cal hoped Connie wouldn't take exception to Rita's slightly defensive tone, but to his relief, Connie didn't seem to notice.

"That's not the problem, Rita. I imagine I'd have made the same decision if it was one of my doctors. I'm actually planning on sending Dr Hardy home soon – he hasn't complained, but I can tell his shoulder is hurting him."

Ethan looked slightly surprised. Cal examined his face and decided Connie had a point.

"Then what is it?" Rita asked cautiously.

Cal couldn't blame her for being a bit wary. After all, it wasn't like Connie to support anything Rita did.

"Before she left, I understand Louise handed you a box of tramadol," said Connie.

Rita didn't blink. "No, she didn't. I actually handed _her_ a box. She was just leaving and I noticed she'd left her painkillers on the desk, so I called her back. Is that what you're thinking of?"

Cal gave Rita the same intense scrutiny as he'd given Ethan, but he couldn't see any signs that Rita was lying. He wasn't sure whether Rita's description of the incident with Louise's tramadol was suggestive of guilt or innocence. Ethan would probably know.

"So, you won't object if I search your office?" said Connie.

Rita looked at her angrily. "You have no right, Connie. You have no right to come in here and accuse me. But yes. I'll let you search my office if that's what it takes."

"Thank you, Rita," said Connie. "Dr Knight, Dr Hardy, you may go now. Ethan, please go to the staff room and wait for me there – I don't think you should be working, but I might need to speak to you again."

Cal hesitated, unwilling to be left out of the action, but he did think it would be a good idea for Ethan to rest.

To his surprise, Ethan showed little interest in obeying Connie. "Let's go and talk to the nurses," he said once they'd left the naughty cupboard.

Cal frowned. "To ask if they saw Louise giving the tramadol to Rita?"

"It's possible Louise gave it to her in private, but we can certainly find out if it's true about Louise leaving the painkillers behind," said Ethan. "It's the kind of thing that could be true – people do sometimes leave their things behind."

"There's no way Louise was talking about the incident Rita mentioned," said Cal. "One of them's lying – and Louise is the one who's on tramadol."

"Yes, but Rita has a motive for stealing tramadol," said Ethan. "It's not a very good motive, but she's not well and it's possible she's trying to frame Mrs Beauchamp again."


	30. Chapter 30

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , Louise probably is on the tramadol for her wrist, but it's never a bad idea to suspect everyone! Framing Connie for theft is definitely not one of Rita's better ideas, though it is better than framing her for murder. Thank you for your review.

 **X-Sammii-X** , thank you for your review. Louise's story is definitely a bit odd, which could mean she's lying, but the truth can often sound very odd too! So it could go either way with Louise. I'm not sure which character Connie would be - she's not really Lestrade or Mrs Hudson! Cal is very naughty sometimes, but we love him like that!

 **Tanith Panic** , thank you for your review. I love that you keep changing your mind about what's happening - I thought everyone would assume Big Mac was the culprit and not be that interested in the rest of it, but I'm really glad you are as it's fun writing an ED full of possible drug addicts!

* * *

"Okay, do you want to do it or shall I?" said Cal as they approached the nursing station.

Ethan looked a bit worried. "Do what?"

"Make the big announcement," said Cal. "Or at least ask the big question."

Ethan stared at him in disbelief. "Caleb, we can't do that! We need to ask them one at a time."

"Why?" said Cal.

"Well, because if we ask everyone at once, some people might be influenced by what other people say," said Ethan. "It's possible the incident with Louise forgetting her tramadol did happen – but on a different day. If someone thinks it was yesterday, but someone else incorrectly states that it happened today, the first person might change their mind and decide it must have been today. Also, if someone has information they don't want to share, it will be a lot easier for them to say nothing if we're asking everyone at once rather than individually."

Cal realised Ethan was right _again_. He sighed inwardly. _Why can't I be right for once?_ "Who should we speak to first?"

"I would say Jacob, as he obviously knew about the incident – he might even have seen it happen," said Ethan. "Then I would suggest David – he's very observant and we know he won't say anything unless he's sure it happened. He doesn't embellish. After that, perhaps Robyn as she knows most things that go on in the ED and I know she'd like to be questioned."

"Don't you think maybe we should ask some of the doctors as well?" said Cal.

"I think we should definitely ask Lily," said Ethan. "We can't really rule her out yet, but I don't want to leave her out as she's been so helpful and she might have a really good idea. I can't imagine Dylan paying too much attention to other people's conversations and Mrs Beauchamp would have told us if she knew anything."

Cal had a sudden, delicious thought. "Imagine if it was Mrs Beauchamp all along! Wouldn't that be brilliant?"

"I think it would make me rather sad," said Ethan.

"Yeah. Me too actually," admitted Cal.

* * *

They found Jacob in cubicles, trying to escape the clutches of an amorous patient. Cal found this quite amusing and was quite tempted to stand and watch him suffer, but he decided helping Charlie was more important. "Senior Staff Nurse Masters!" he said, trying to sound just like Connie. Only a lot more masculine. "A word, please?"

It had the desired effect. The patient scurried off and Jacob smiled gratefully at Cal. "Thanks. I'm really glad it was you and not Connie! How can I help you?"

"How did you know about Louise leaving because of her injury?" said Cal. "Did you see it happen?"

"Not quite," said Jacob. "I just caught the end of the conversation. I saw Louise coming towards me, not wearing her scrubs, then I heard Rita say: 'Louise? You forgot this!'. I didn't see what it was, but Louise went back for it and put it in her bag. As she passed me, I asked if she was okay. She said her wrist was playing up and Rita had said she could go home. I wished her a speedy recovery."

"Did you discuss this with Rita at all?" asked Ethan.

Jacob shook his head. "I'm a busy man, Ethan, and it's not my job to question Rita's decisions. Besides, I knew Louise had been having problems with her wrist all day, so it wasn't a surprise. I'd actually suggested it myself."

Cal and Ethan looked at one another.

"Thank you, Jacob," said Ethan. "That was really helpful. We'll let you get on now."

A curious look came into Jacob's eyes. "Something tells me that wasn't what you were hoping to hear."

"It wasn't what we were _expecting_ to hear," said Cal. "I have no idea what I was hoping for."

"I don't suppose you noticed anyone else who might have overheard the conversation between Rita and Louise?" said Ethan.

Jacob shook his head. "Can't say I did. Sorry. I expect there were other nurses there, but I only noticed Rita and Louise."

"That's okay," said Ethan. "Thank you for your help." He and Cal withdrew to discuss the latest developments. "Well, we don't know that it was the tramadol Louise left behind – it could have been anything – but Jacob's story does seem to support Rita's, not Louise's."

Cal nodded thoughtfully and tried to think of something really helpful and profound to say. Luckily, the appearance of David meant this wasn't necessary. "David, can we have a quick word, mate?"

David looked at them nervously. "Is everything all right?"

"Yeah, everything's fine," said Cal, slinging a friendly arm around David's shoulder. For some reason, this made David look even less comfortable.

"It's all right, David. There's no need to worry," said Ethan. "We'd just like to ask you a quick question and if you don't know the answer, it doesn't matter. Louise went home early because of her wrist injury. We were just wondering if you were present when Rita made the decision to send her home."

David frowned. "I think perhaps I was. But I was trying not to listen."

"Oh, I know you wouldn't have been listening," said Ethan at once. "But sometimes I find I can remember an incident, even if I paid no particular attention to it at the time."

Cal smiled and patted his brother on the shoulder. Ethan really was good with David.

David relaxed slightly. "Louise told Rita she was in a lot of pain and was wondering if she might take a break. Rita said if it was that bad, maybe she should go home. Louise said she didn't want to let the department down. Rita told her not to worry. Rita gave the wrist a quick examination and they agreed Louise would go home for the rest of the day."

Cal groaned silently. Wrong conversation.

"Did you see Louise again?" asked Ethan.

"Yes: she went over to Rita again about ten minutes later and thanked her for letting her have the day off and said she'd see her tomorrow," said David. "Rita said she should take a couple of days and have a complete rest. Louise walked away; Rita called her back saying she'd forgotten something. She gave Louise a box of tablets, saying she didn't recommend leaving those behind. Louise said something about forgetting her own head, then she left."

Now, this was more like it, thought Cal. "Did you see what was in the box?"

"No, but I assumed it was her painkillers," said David. "She's on the same as us, Ethan. Tramadol. She warned me to keep my box safe. I carry all my medication with me in this bag, so there's no danger of losing it, but it was thoughtful of her. Is there anything else you'd like to know?"

"No, that's great, David!" said Cal, patting him on the shoulder. "Thanks a lot for your help. That's all we need, isn't it, Ethan?"

"I think it is," said Ethan, smiling at David. "Thank you very much."

* * *

Cal dragged Ethan back to the naughty cupboard. "Things look very bad for Louise."

"They really do," agreed Ethan. "I was really hoping we could rule her out after our conversation today, but now I'm not so sure."

"So what should we do?" said Cal. "Go and find Mrs Beauchamp?"

Ethan shook his head. "I think we should talk to Robyn. She's Louise's closest friend. David said he was trying not to listen, so it is possible he's missed or forgotten something. It's also just about possible they met again somewhere else and that was when Louise gave Rita my tramadol. I'm not sure how it could work in terms of timing, but it's possible."

Cal frowned thoughtfully. "Do you think it's likely?"

"Honestly – no," said Ethan. "If Louise wanted to thank Rita again for letting her go home, you'd expect her to do it when she was giving Rita my tramadol. Then there would have been no need to speak to her again at the nurse's station."

"You're right," said Cal. "I mean, Louise can be rude and she _might_ have forgotten…"

"I don't think she'd forget she was going home," said Ethan. "But perhaps Robyn will be able to shed some light on it. I… well… I don't think she's quite as good at closing her ears to conversations as David."

* * *

Robyn was delighted. "You mean you're going to question me? You're actually going to question me?"

Cal explained what they wanted to know about Louise's conversation with Rita before she left.

Robyn's face fell. "I didn't hear it. Not all of it."

"No?" said Cal, disappointed.

"I mean, I heard the second part," said Robyn. "But the first part was all in whispers. Really quiet. I could hardly hear a single word and I didn't hear anything that made sense. Something about a room… someone being stupid… something or other was plain as day. That's all I can remember."

"So, there was a part in _whispers_?" said Cal eagerly.

"Yeah, there was," said Robyn, looking pleased. "Didn't you know that?"

Cal shook his head. "We spoke to David and Jacob, but they didn't mention it."

"Jacob wasn't there," said Robyn, "and David isn't as nosy as me. He might not have noticed."

"Was anyone there who was close enough to have overheard, did you notice?" said Ethan.

Robyn thought. "I don't think anyone was closer than me. Sorry."

"And could you see what they were doing?"

Robyn shook her head regretfully. "I thought maybe Louise showed Rita something, but Rita was kind of blocking my view."

"Thank you, Robyn. You've been extremely helpful," said Ethan. "We thought we had two conflicting stories, but now it seems possible that both are true."

"But why would Louise not mention Rita calling her back?" said Cal.

Ethan shrugged, then winced. "Ow. My shoulder really doesn't like it when I shrug. It's possible Louise didn't see it as important. We asked her about the tramadol she found, not about her own tramadol. It probably seemed irrelevant – and it's never a good idea to be irrelevant when speaking to Mrs Beauchamp. It's almost as bad as being irreverent."

"What's this about?" said Robyn eagerly. "Is it the tramadol case? Oh my God! You don't think it's Louise? It can't be!"

"At this stage, we're just collecting evidence," said Ethan. "But your evidence is certainly in Louise's favour."


	31. Chapter 31

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , thank you for your review. I agree that Cal won't rest till he's found the thief - once he's got an idea in his head, he won't let go! The thief probably won't be grateful, but Cal will save them a lot of stress.

 **X-Sammii-X** , I'm glad you're still enjoying this! There will be more twists in this chapter and you will find out what Louise and Rita were whispering about - Louise was definitely trying to keep something quiet! Cal and Ethan couldn't manage without their naughty cupboard. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , I bet Cal would look good in Connie's clothes too - he has lovely legs! Robyn could have been upset by the questionig, but there is a lot of unhappiness in this story so I thought we'd have happy Robyn. Cal and Ethan would never dare accuse Connie of anything! Thank you for your review.

 **InfinityAndOne** , thank you for your review. There are times when Cal is right and Ethan is wrong, but nothing sticks in the memory like humiliation! One of the few things I don't like so much about detective stories is how detached the detectives can be - I prefer to see them getting emotionally involved.

* * *

"So what now?" said Cal. "Do we talk to Lily?"

"It might be a good idea," said Ethan.

"Talk to Lily about what?" said a voice.

Cal spun round. "Lily! We were just talking about you."

"So I gathered," said Lily. "Have you come to the conclusion that I stole the tramadol? Did the other suspects fall for your little trap?"

Cal felt very glad he'd told Ethan about what had happened with Lily earlier. "Only one person fell for it, but it looks like she gave the tramadol to Rita."

"Louise took the tramadol then," said Lily thoughtfully.

Cal stared at her. "How did you know that?"

"Because you said 'she'. You clearly weren't speaking of me and I am not aware of either David, Jacob or Big Mac deciding to live as a woman."

Cal groaned. Giving one suspect away to another… not great.

"Have you asked Rita about this?" said Lily.

"Rita says didn't happen and she doesn't know anything about it," said Cal.

"I see," said Lily, which was more than Cal did. "If you suspect Louise, I would advise speaking to Noel."

"Noel works on reception. He couldn't possibly have overheard what Louise whispered to Rita!" said Cal.

"No, but when I passed reception earlier, Louise was speaking to Noel," said Lily. "She was clearly on her way home. I did not overhear much, but Louise said: 'I mean, seriously. What an idiot!'. Noel asked: 'What did you do?'. Louise replied: 'I gave the box to Rita'. Ethan, does this perhaps add something to your investigations?"

* * *

"Do we even need to ask Noel?" said Cal as they made their way to reception.

Ethan looked surprised. "Of course. Louise could have been talking about something else – and we also need to verify Lily's statement."

Cal stopped walking. "Wait a minute. How do we know Louise didn't lie to Noel too?"

"Why would she bother?" said Ethan. "If she'd stolen something, you'd think it would be in her interests to keep quiet about the fact it was ever in her possession. Louise didn't know she'd been caught on camera."

"And the whispered conversation with Rita?"

"That could have been about anything," said Ethan. "We do sometimes whisper about sensitive cases or personal matters."

Cal reluctantly decided Ethan was right _again_. They went over to reception. "Noel, mate! Did you see Louise on her way out?"

Noel nodded. "Yeah, I did. She was in a lot of pain, poor girl. By the way, did you get your tramadol back, Ethan? It really wasn't the smartest idea leaving that lying around."

"Um… no," said Ethan, going fifty shades of red. "No, it wasn't."

Cal actually felt sorry for his little brother. "Don't tell anyone, but it was actually a trap. To bring the thief out into the open. Louise was caught on camera taking the tramadol."

"But she didn't _steal_ it," said Noel. "She handed it in to Rita."

"Yes: we just wanted to check her statement," said Ethan quickly. "We aren't accusing Louise if anything. We're just being thorough. I like to be thorough."

Noel seemed to relax. He even laughed. "And do you know what Louise did after complaining about your stupidity? She walked off without her own painkillers. Rita had to call her back!"

"Why weren't they in her bag?" said Cal.

Noel shrugged. "She probably got them both out so she could make sure she was giving the right box to Rita."

Cal was disappointed. Unfortunately, that did make sense. "Thanks, Noel."

"Do you have any idea who it is?" said Noel. He looked worried.

"Well, if it's not Louise, it's probably- ow, _Ethan_!"

"Sorry. My foot slipped," said Ethan. "I'm sorry, Noel. We can't tell you who's on our list, but there are quite a few people on it."

Cal glared at Ethan, reaching down to massage his foot, but then he realised.

The only serious contenders now were Lily and Big Mac. Lily, who'd given them a major clue to help them get Louise off the hook – and Noel's best friend.

"Could you tell me anyone who's not on it?" said Noel.

Cal really didn't know what he could say.

"Well… you're not on it," said Ethan.

It was clearly scant comfort for Noel.

Ethan moved closer to the desk. "Noel, if you know something – anything at all – it really will be in your best interests to tell us. I know it feels horrible, having to talk about someone you work with, but whoever is responsible has a genuine illness. We want to help them as well as Charlie."

"I don't know anything," said Noel firmly. "I have no idea who it might be."

* * *

Cal and Ethan were heading back to the naughty cupboard when Connie appeared. "Dr Knight? Dr Hardy? A word, please."

Cal smiled to himself. He'd obviously got the wording just right with Jacob.

"Yes, Mrs Beauchamp?" said Ethan.

Connie turned and led the way to her office. "I found this in my drawer." She handed a box to Ethan.

"My tramadol!" said Ethan.

For some reason, he actually looked guilty. Cal was glad there weren't any real detectives involved in this case or Ethan would have been in jail by now.

"I-it wasn't me who put it there!" said Ethan, looking even more guilty.

"Wait a minute: wasn't the door locked?" said Cal.

Connie shook her head. "You're not the only person who can set a trap, Dr Knight. Unfortunately, I wasn't present to film the culprit, but the first suspect on my list is Sister Freeman. I don't suppose anyone's confirmed the story she told us about Louise?"

"Actually, Rita and Louise were both telling the truth," said Cal. "There were two conversations."

"Well, actually, there was only one," said Ethan.

Cal sighed. "Ethan, stop being so… what's that word you use? Beginning with P?"

"Pedantic or pernickety?"

"Both."

"I'm sorry, Caleb, but it's important to be accurate and there was only one conversation," said Ethan. "The part mentioned by Louise – which was, to her mind, the only important and relevant part - was conducted in whispers and almost certainly happened as Louise described; the second part was in normal voices and happened as exactly as Rita said, as confirmed by Robyn and David. Robyn and Noel between them confirmed that Louise's story was also true – though we wouldn't have thought of asking Noel without Lily's help." He paused. "But that does mean that Rita lied – Louise _did_ give her Ethan's box of tramadol."

"Right: I'll hear your evidence later," said Connie. "I need to speak to Rita. I know we haven't always seen eye-to-eye, but framing me for tramadol theft not once but twice is going too far. I need to deal with Sister Freeman – and deal with her now. Would you go and find her for me, please?"

Cal looked at Connie sadly, but he didn't see what they could do but obey.

However, he'd reckoned without his little brother. "Excuse me, Mrs Beauchamp. I know this is absolutely none of my business and please do feel free to ignore everything I say, but I really do think-"

"Dr Hardy, if you have something to say, just say it," said Connie. " _Quickly_."

Now Ethan was on the spot, he looked terrified again, but he wasn't giving up. "I-I-I think perhaps it would be a mistake to judge Rita too harshly. She has behaved badly, but I'm concerned the reasons might be more related to mental health issues than maliciousness."

Connie looked at him for a moment, then nodded towards a chair. "I'm listening."

"Rita has sometimes made some bad choices," said Ethan, "and perhaps I am understating that slightly, but it usually follows an extremely distressing experience, often involving the appearance in the hospital of her husband, a convicted paedophile. I think anyone would struggle with seeing an ex in the hospital, but knowing you've loved someone who was capable of such a terrible crime must be devastating. If it has messed Rita's head up a bit, that's really not surprising. I'm not saying that this in any way excuses what Rita has done – but perhaps it does explain it and I think what she needs, more than anything, is support. If we can help her recover from the original event that triggered this, perhaps then she wouldn't find herself resorting to such extreme and potentially harmful behaviours. If you can't forgive her, Mrs Beauchamp, then I understand that completely. You are the one who has been hurt by her actions and you have every right to be. But I would like to offer Rita my support."

Cal looked at his brother in admiration. "And so would I. I haven't always behaved well either. I've done terrible things, mostly to Ethan. But he forgave me and gave me another chance. I'm not saying I won't mess up again. I wish I _could_ say that. But I think I'm a better brother; a better person; a better doctor now than I used to be and that's because of Ethan's support."

Ethan smiled at him. "You were always a good brother. You just didn't know how to show it. My behaviour wasn't perfect either. But now… I'm so glad you're here. Without you, I'd probably be sleeping off a hangover in a ditch."

"I'll never let that happen," said Cal, puling Ethan into his arms.

"And I'll never let it happen to you," said Ethan unsteadily.

Connie didn't seem to have noticed the emotional scene between the brothers – which Cal couldn't help thinking might be for the best. "All right," she said at last. "Support Rita and we'll see how it goes. See if you can persuade her to see Ben Harding. I feel this is partly my fault. Grace disappeared on the day Rita's husband was in the hospital. He disappeared too. I honestly believed they were together and that he was… I can't even say it. As it happened, she was fine, but I was so distraught by the whole experience and I blamed Rita – and that was unfair. It's not her fault her ex-husband needed hospital treatment. I said terrible things to her."

"You'd just faced a mother's worst nightmare," said Ethan with compassion.

"Yes – but Rita has faced a wife's worst nightmare," said Connie. She thought for a moment. "Okay. Talk to Rita. Take as long as you feel you need. But when you feel the time is right, I'd like to speak to her. I think we both have a lot to talk about."


	32. Chapter 32

_There will probably only be two more chapters after this one. Thank you for sticking with it. I hope those of you who celebrate had a good Christmas._

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , Rita took the drugs to frame Connie, but that's a very interesting idea that she might have taken the drugs as a coping method. I think it's too late for me to change it now considering what I've already posted, but it would have been a brilliant twist if Cal and Ethan had unmasked Rita as a proven tramadol thief and addict, only for Big Mac to steal again when Rita was away receiving treatment. Thank you for your review. I'm glad you like Ethan's slippery foot!

 **Tanith Panic** , thank you for your review. I'm glad I'm still managing to keep you guessing! I won't be writing the scene between Connie and Rita as that's too much of a distraction from the main story, but it would be an interesting conversation! I would love to see Connie and Rita bonding. Or Connie and Rita bondage.

 **Is-there-somewhere-x** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you like the way Ethan supported and understood Rita. I was really sad no-one supported her in the series. I think Ethan might have understood if he hadn't been concentrating so hard on being more Cal. He's usually very understanding or sweet, or he used to be.

 **X-Sammii-X** , thank you for your review. I'm glad the last chapter made you laugh. As I said before, I won't be writing the conversation between Connie and Rita as it's not part of Cal and Ethan's investigation and I'm not honestly sure I could write it, but I will try to give them some sort of happy (but not romantic!) ending.

 **InfinityAndOne** , I don't think Noel knows for sure that Big Mac did it, but he was suspicious in the series and I think that's what's happening now - he's desperate to be told it isn't his best mate! I love Ethan's understanding side. I really miss it. I'm so sad about what they've done with Ethan. Thank you for your review.

* * *

"Jacob, have you seen Rita?" asked Cal.

Jacob laughed. "Is Rita next on the list? I think she's in her office."

"No, we already know it's not Rita," said Cal. He thought Rita had been through enough without Jacob teasing her about being a suspect. "But we were hoping Rita could… um…"

"Assist us with our enquiries," put in Ethan.

Cal patted him on the shoulder.

"Cal, get off! That hurts!" whimpered Ethan.

Cal patted his other shoulder instead. "Sorry, mate. Wrong shoulder. Though considering all those times your foot has slipped…"

* * *

When they knocked at the door, Rita asked them to come in in a cautious voice. She didn't exactly look pleased to see the brothers. "Is it important? I'm quite busy."

"It is kind of important really," said Cal. "We know you put Ethan's tramadol in Connie's office."

"What tramadol?" said Rita unconvincingly. "It's not mine. It wasn't me."

"Rita, we know it was you," said Cal. "Who else would hate Connie that much?"

Rita looked down at her desk. "Well, if they're _Ethan's_ tablets, don't you think he…"

Ethan moved closer to her. "Rita, please listen. We know you've been through a really tough time and quite frankly the fact you're still here and still able to do your job to such a high standard is flabbergasting."

Cal smiled slightly but decided to leave his comments on Ethan's vocabulary for later.

"But the things you do sometimes… they do kind of show that it is affecting you," said Ethan. "I know Mrs Beauchamp hurt you. She said some very hurtful things. But she'd just faced a mother's worst nightmare: her little girl disappeared from the hospital at the same time as a convicted paedophile."

"How do you know about that?" demanded Rita.

Ethan flinched slightly at her tone but continued. "I'm sorry: can I answer your questions in a moment? Mrs Beauchamp must have been so terrified and the relief of getting Grace back unharmed wouldn't have been enough for her terror to fade. What she said to you was wrong – if your ex-husband requires hospital treatment, you are in no way responsible for that or for anything he does while he's here. And if having him around upsets you and stops you from thinking straight, that's understandable and not your fault. I really can't imagine how terrible it must feel."

"No, you can't," said Rita in a low voice. "No-one can. Just knowing I married someone who's capable of that…"

"It's not your fault," said Ethan. "You didn't know what he was like. But whatever the provocation, framing someone for murder or theft or anything else is still a crime and it could get you into a lot of trouble. You could potentially lose your job, Rita, and I don't want to see that happen because you're a n exceptional nurse. Kind, intelligent, empathic, strong, courageous – one of the best nurses I've ever worked with."

Rita looked up at him. "I don't know why I do it, Ethan. It just sort of happens."

"I know," said Ethan. "It probably seems completely right at the time, when your thoughts are so mixed-up. But apart from the risk to your job, I don't think, ultimately, this is making you happy. And that's my main concern. Your wellbeing. Rita, you don't have to do as I say, but I strongly recommend that you talk to someone about this. Don't keep your feelings inside you."

"But no-one wants to listen," said Rita. "No-one wants to hear about a man like that. And they judge me, for choosing him."

Ethan moved closer and sat in the chair opposite her. "No-one should ever judge you for that. I believe any true friend will understand and I will always be here if you want to talk, but I was also thinking that you should get professional help. They definitely won't judge you and you won't have to see them every day at work. They'll help you work through your feelings. They'll help you to see it's not your fault and then, once your mind is calmer, perhaps the people who hurt you, like Mrs Beauchamp, won't matter so much. They can help you to put this in the past."

"Do you think I deserve to be helped?" asked Rita.

"Of course you do," said Ethan. "You're a victim, Rita. He deceived you. He caused you to believe he was a good man when it wasn't true. An adult, intelligent woman can fall for a deception just as surely as anyone else."

Rita sighed. "But if Connie knows it's me…"

Cal decided it was time he did something useful. "She does know, but we talked to her about it – well, it was mostly Ethan who did the talking – and she agrees you need to be helped, not blamed. She does want to talk to you about it though. When you're ready."

"I don't know," said Rita. "What would I say?"

"You can take some time to think about it," said Ethan. "But really, you're almost in the same situation. You both had terrible shocks – among the worst things a wife or mother could go through. That kind of thing can cause you to push people away. But it can also bring you closer together. I really do think Mrs Beauchamp sees your side of the story now and she's prepared to listen."

Cal nodded. "Ethan finds it helpful to write things down before he says them sometimes. He also likes to rehearse them out loud in the mirror."

Ethan glared at him, blushing. "I do not!"

"Okay, I haven't actually _seen_ you do it," said Cal. "I've only heard you. So you could be saying it into the toilet bowl for all I know. Though in that case, I would expect there to be more of an echo."

"Stop it!" said Ethan. "I'm trying to help Rita!"

"Maybe _I'm_ helping Rita," said Cal. "I've made her smile."

Ethan still looked ready to kill him, so Cal quickly added:

"Though I couldn't have made her smile if you hadn't been so brilliant at helping her."

"Yeah," said Rita softly. "You did make me smile, Cal – and you helped me a lot, Ethan. Thank you."

"You're welcome, Rita," said Ethan. "I'm pleased I was able to help after all the help you've given me." He stood up. "Is there anything else we can do for you before we go?"

"Would you… would you go with me to Connie's office, please?" said Rita. "Just as far as the door?"

Cal had to respect her for that. Every time he'd been called to Connie's office, he'd longed to ask someone to go with him, but that kind of thing didn't really fit with his image. So he had to work out some other way of trying to persuade someone to accompany him and that wasn't easy when he was in a complete panic about what Connie was going to say. "Of course we can."

Rita smiled at them both. "Thank you."

* * *

Cal recognised the way Rita was slowing down as they approached Connie's office. He'd caught himself doing exactly the same thing. But (as had always been the case when Cal had tried it) slowing down didn't actually change the situation. It only delayed the inevitable.

Rita looked fearfully at the door.

"Would you like me to knock for you?" offered Ethan.

Cal might have hugged his brother if they'd been somewhere a bit less public. He would never have thought of that, but it did seem to make a difference to Rita.

"Yeah. Please. If you don't mind," she said.

Ethan knocked on the door. When they heard Connie's voice, Ethan opened it slightly. "Hello, Mrs Beauchamp. Would it be convenient for Rita to talk to you now?"

"One moment, please," said Connie's voice.

Rita looked as though she quite wanted to run out of the hospital and never come back. Cal knew that feeling too. He put his hand on Rita's shoulder and squeezed it gently as they heard Connie walking towards the door.

She opened it. "Rita. Thank you for coming to see me. Would you like to come in? We do have something to sort out, but I don't think what happened between us is the real issue. So maybe we could put that aside and look at what's really important: _you_."

* * *

Cal was quite disappointed when Ethan decided they needed to do some work. He was getting so into the whole detective and counselling business, he'd almost forgotten he was a doctor too. But once he'd got back to work, he almost enjoyed it. At least Ethan couldn't show him up when they were working in different cubicles.

When lunchtime finally arrived, he exited a cubicle to discover Lily standing almost directly outside it.

"Lily! You sc… surprised me."

"Dr Knight. I was wondering if you wanted to come and have lunch with me," she said.

Cal was even more surprised then. "Um… yeah. Sure. That sounds good."

"Don't get too excited," said Lily. "I thought you might like to examine the contents of my tramadol boxes properly this time. Then we can focus our attention on the real culprit. If my profession of innocence meets with your satisfaction, I believe there is only one suspect remaining."

Cal sighed. He'd come to that conclusion himself. Not that he wanted Lily, Louise, David or Jacob to be guilty, but he also didn't want it to be Big Mac. "Can you give me ten minutes so I can get changed and tell Ethan where I'm going?"

"Ethan is already invited," said Lily. "I asked him to meet us in the staff room."

"Oh. Okay." Suddenly, Cal didn't find Lily's invitation nearly as flattering. They walked to the staff room together and found Ethan standing outside it. "What's going on?"

Ethan pointed towards the door. "Mrs Beauchamp and Jacob are in there," he whispered. "I don't really like to interrupt."

"Why can't they just use a cupboard like you do?" complained Cal.

"I think," began Lily, but she fell silent as they heard Connie's raised voice.

"Jacob. I don't want to listen to your excuses. You have none. You are a thief. You always have been a thief."

"I'm not a thief!" said Jacob indignantly. "It's an _addiction_ , Connie."

"That may be so, but it doesn't alter the fact you stole them," said Connie. "If they're not returned by the end of the day, there will be very serious consequences."


	33. Chapter 33

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , I'm glad I managed to surprise you with the ending of the last chapter! Jacob is certainly a guilty man. I'm glad you liked the Cal and Ethan scenes. They'll be in every scene from now on - no more eavesdropping on the boss! It looks like there will be two more after this now. Thank you for your review.

 **Tanith Panic** , I hope you'll be surprised! It would be lovely if you were impressed too, but I'm happy to settle for just surprising you. I think it will help Rita a lot to have support - I think only Elle and Charlie supported her. I'm afraid Cal and Ethan seem fated to hurt each other, even when they're getting on well! Thank you for your review.

 **InfinityAndOne** , thank you for your review. I'm glad you like the little extra details like the shoulder and the mirror - I love it when Cal embarrasses Ethan with little random comments in the episodes. Ethan always used to be really thoughtful and I'm glad I'm bringing that side of him across. Yes, I think Cal might be a bit jealous!

 **X-Sammii-X** , it upset me in the episodes that Rita got almost no support, so I'm glad I thought of a way of giving her support as part of this story. Yes, I think Cal did think Lily was asking him on a date! I'm so glad the last chapter gave you something to smile about. Thank you for your review. Whenever they come, I'm grateful for them.

* * *

Cal, Ethan and Lily looked at one another.

Jacob? Jacob was the thief?

Of course, he had been on the suspect list until very recently, but he'd been cleared… hadn't he?

"Maybe he wrote that patient testimonial himself," whispered Cal.

"But he said you were with him almost the whole time," Ethan whispered back.

"Almost isn't the same as the whole time," said Cal. "And besides, we've only got his word for that. _I_ don't remember anything about it."

"Did you check the patient testimonial?" asked Lily.

Cal was trying to think of an answer that implied yes but meant no, but the look of sheer embarrassment on Ethan's face gave it away.

"Then we need to check the testimonial and compare the handwriting with Jacob's," said Lily.

Cal frowned. "Handwriting is kind of last millennium, Lily."

"If she picked up a comments form from reception, she would certainly have filled it in by hand," said Lily.

Cal sighed. She was right. Again.

She was nearly as bad as Ethan.

Lily was looking almost pleased. "If Jacob is the thief, Big Mac and I are innocent, though perhaps you should still check my tramadol supply for completeness. Jacob and I could be working together."

Cal shook his head. "I don't think you'd be so anxious for us to check your statements if you were involved."

"Why not? It's undeniably a very effective way of discouraging you from suspecting me," said Lily.

"But a risk," said Ethan. "Lily Chao doesn't take risks."

"Correction: I don't take _uncalculated_ risks," said Lily.

Cal looked at her in confusion. "You're not saying…"

"Of course not!" said Lily impatiently. "I'm neither a thief nor a tramadol addict and I have little or no personal contact with Jacob. But my point is that you mustn't take my word for it."

Cal was about to reply when the staff room door opened and Jacob walked out. He looked surprised to see them, then he gave a little smile and walked off.

He didn't look guilty, but perhaps he didn't realise Connie had been overheard. He was probably thinking: _So near and yet so far, suckers_.

Well, all Cal could say to that was: _So far and yet not quite far enough, sucker_.

He decided not to say it out loud though.

Connie came out a moment later. She looked remarkably calm.

"Looks like you pipped us at the post there, Mrs Beauchamp," said Cal.

Connie looked slightly confused. "While I admit that sounds more than likely, I'm at a loss to understand what you mean."

"We… couldn't help overhearing," said Cal. "We were all convinced it was Big Mac. We thought Jacob had ruled himself out."

"I don't understand," said Connie. "You think Jacob is the tramadol thief?"

Cal couldn't blame her for supporting the man she loved. He'd done the same for Taylor, after all, and she'd done far worse. "We heard, Mrs Beauchamp. You told Jacob he was the thief and told him he had to give itl back."

To Cal's amazement, Connie started to laugh. "Oh. No. I did tell Jacob he was a thief and he had to give something back, but I wasn't talking about the tramadol."

"What did he steal?" asked Ethan innocently. "I mean… sorry. That's none of my business."

"No, it isn't," said Connie, a smile playing around her lips. "But as you asked, Ethan, Jacob stole a pair of my panties."

Cal wished he dared get his phone out so he could film Ethan going slowly purple.

"Oh, come on, Ethan!" said Connie impatiently. "Surely you don't think I do my job commando."

Ethan's mouth opened. Cal guessed the words 'Connie' and 'panties' had never been connected in Ethan's mind.

"I noticed a pair had disappeared and knew immediately what had happened," said Connie. "So I confronted him. Of course, you don't have to take my word for it, Ethan. You have my permission to question Jacob on the subject and to ask him to let you view the evidence."

Ethan seemed to be having trouble taking in oxygen. Cal moved protectively to his side.

"Thank you, Mrs Beauchamp," said Lily. "Dr Knight and Dr Hardy might consider your offer later, but for now we have a small matter to clear up concerning the theft of some tramadol. We do need first to prove my innocence absolutely and without question, but I think we all know who the thief must be."

Connie nodded. "Big Mac."

"It seems crazy!" said Cal. "I mean, _Big Mac_."

"It would explain why Noel was so worried," said Ethan.

"So, what would you like to do?" asked Connie, rather to Cal's amazement. "Would you rather confront the thief yourself, as you've done all the investigation, or would you rather let me do it?"

"You should do it, Mrs Beauchamp," said Ethan.

"We'll do it!" said Cal, almost at the same time.

Lily looked thoughtful. "I think perhaps Ethan should do it."

Ethan looked terrified. "Me?"

Cal was fed up. "Why him?"

"He will approach Mac more sensitively than you or I," said Lily. "We know he did it, but we have no evidence. We have discovered his guilt by the simple means of a process of elimination. I think we can do very little without evidence. We can accuse him, but that is useless without a confession. I believe Ethan's sensitivity and kindness is the best chance of getting one."

Ethan endeavoured to speak through more blushes. "I think we do need to speak to him rather than simply accusing him. It isn't completely impossible that someone else might have taken it; someone we haven't considered. Or perhaps there were two thieves. But I think we really do need to speak to Mac. I think it's telling that Noel clearly suspects him too. As Mrs Beauchamp says, it is more difficult to hide an addiction from someone you live with – I know all Cal's."

Cal gasped. "I don't have any addictions?"

"How about women and fast cars?" said Ethan.

"All right. Fair enough," said Cal. At least he hadn't mentioned the drinking and gambling.

"You also have a fondness for drinking and gambling, which I'm monitoring," said Ethan.

To Cal's annoyance, not only Connie but even Lily looked amused.

"Hey, it's not me who's been coming home at 4am with shopping trolleys, singing _West Side Story_ ," said Cal.

Ethan was starting to go purple again. "I haven't!"

"Oh, yes, you have, little brother," said Cal. "But we won't worry about that now."

"No," said Connie, to Ethan's obvious relief. "I don't care if Dr Hardy spends all night racing around in a shopping trolley singing the entire score of every West End musical in existence as long as he continues to produce a high standard of work – and so far, he has. So, you'd like to visit Lily's and Louise's flats and then return here to speak to Mac?"

Cal nodded.

"That would be sensible and logical," observed Lily.

"And probably fair as far as Mac is concerned," added Ethan.

"Then I'll let you get on with it," said Connie. "If you get into any difficulties, you know where I am."

She was almost out of sight when Ethan asked hesitantly: "Um… how did it go with Rita?"

Connie turned to face him. "That is none of your concern, Dr Hardy. Just because I let you play detective, that doesn't entitle you to know my personal business. All you need to know is that if Rita loses her job at any point – and I very much hope she won't - it won't be my doing. But thank you for helping me to understand her point of view." She walked away.

Ethan was looking embarrassed again, but he was smiling too. "I'm glad they managed to sort things out."

"Me too," said Cal. "And I'd say you're entitled to know a lot more than that considering you played such a big part in getting them to talk to each other."

"I'm just really happy Rita's not going to lose her job," said Ethan.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that," said Cal. "Rita's not going to stop struggling just because she's got Connie onside."

"But she won't be alone," said Ethan. He looked hopefully at Cal and Lily. "Will she?"

"Of course not," said Cal. If Rita was ever silly enough to want to talk to him, he'd certainly listen.

Lily also nodded. "Emotions can be very powerful. They can affect your work and your personal relationships more than you intend them to. I don't imagine Rita will want my support, but perhaps I understand better than most."

"And you've come through it," said Ethan. "So you'll not only be able to advise Rita but to inspire her too."

"I have always wanted to inspire someone," admitted Lily.

"And you do, Lily," said Ethan, smiling at her. "You inspire me every day."

Cal noticed that Lily blushed a lot more prettily than Ethan.

* * *

On their way out of the ED, they saw Jacob standing at reception. A smile came to Cal's face and he asked Ethan and Lily to stop for a moment.

"What are you doing?" asked Lily.

Ethan groaned. "Oh, Caleb. You're _not_."

"It's very important to be thorough, isn't it, Lily?" said Cal, and walked up to Jacob. "Jacob, we've had reason to put you back on our suspect list."

Jacob laughed loudly. "How can you put me back on your suspect list? You know it's not me. It's impossible."

"We need proof that the theft Mrs Beauchamp accused you of committing and the addiction she claimed you had are entirely unrelated to our investigation," said Cal, quite pleased with all his long words. _You see, Ethan: I can do it too._ "If you can produce the evidence we require, we will be more than happy to let this go."

"Evidence?" said Jacob. "What are you on about now?"

"Mrs Beauchamp's panties," said Cal, not bothering to keep his voice down. "We need to see them."

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Ethan put his head in his hands. The whimper he produced wasn't necessarily entirely related to his shoulder.

"You want to see Connie's panties?" Jacob laughed. "In your dreams!"

"She did say you could show us," said Cal. "The ones you stole, I mean."

"I haven't got them," said Jacob. "They're back at my place." He lowered his voice. "You can come over after work if you like."

Ethan stepped forward bravely. "Thank you very much, Jacob, but that really isn't necessary."

Cal put on his best serious face. "Ethan, I think it would be a very great mistake to rule anything out without looking at the evidence. It's very important to be thorough. Isn't that right, Lily? I'll see you tonight, Jacob."


	34. Chapter 34

**Bonnie Sveen Fan** , it really was naughty of Jacob! Stealing is still stealing and it's not as though Connie doesn't have a use for them. No, I don't think Cal will ever learn! Thank you for your review. I hope you enjoy the last couple of chapters.

 **Tanith Panic** , thank you for your review. I'm really glad you liked the twist. I might it would be interesting if one of the suspects was caught stealing something else after being ruled out, with Cal and Ethan getting completely the wrong end of the stick. I imagine Connie having a bit of a saucy side! Maybe it's from reading your stories.

 **CBloom2** , thank you for your review. It was a bit random, but I needed something that fulfilled various criteria - the theft needed to make Connie angry enough to confront Jacob the moment she saw him, but it couldn't be anything too valuable and it had to embarrass Ethan in some way. Because we all like seeing Ethan blush!

 **InfinityAndOne** , I love Lily too. Sometimes she takes things too seriously, but I find her seriousness very endearing. I agree - Cal is definitely great! Just as great as Ethan and Lily. Perhaps even greater as he has so much more to distract him. Only Connie could carry off her predicament without embarrassment! Thank you for your review.

 **X-Sammii-X** , Connie did kind of give Cal permission to ask to see the evidence, but it's possible she'll take various opportunities to embarrass him in the future! It would be funny if that happened on Casualty. The actors are so good at comedy. I'm glad Lily blushing is cute! Thank you for your review.

* * *

Lily had a satisfied smile on her face as they returned to the ED. "That seems as close to conclusive as it's possible to get. I have a more than adequate supply of tramadol and we can be reasonably sure there is no tramadol hidden in Louise's flat."

"I still think you might have let me check Louise's underwear drawer," said Cal.

"I doubt you would have performed the task with sufficient focus."

"But what if you and Louise are in this together?" said Cal. "You might have sewed the tablets to your bra, smuggled them out of the flat and then hidden them with Louise's underwear."

"You don't know very much about sewing, do you?" said Lily.

"Of course I don't!" said Cal. "Ethan does all my sewing."

Lily looked disapproving. "You shouldn't be his servant, Ethan."

Ethan shrugged. "I don't mind. It's better than listening him spend six hours swearing over a five-minute job and then having to treat all his needle wounds and then wash the garment because it's covered in his blood, unpick all Cal's completely inadequate sewing and then redo it all. It's less trouble to do it myself in the first place."

Lily looked thoughtful. "Perhaps so."

"But…" Ethan's eyes dropped. "I won't always be able to do fiddly things with a needle, Cal."

"I'll learn," said Cal, putting his arm around Ethan and giving him a quick hug. "Don't worry. If I can suture a wound, I should be able to suture a shirt button."

"That's exactly what I've been telling you for the past two years!" said Ethan, but his voice was soft and he was smiling at his brother.

* * *

They found Big Mac hiding in an office. He looked tired and stressed, though he made a point of trying to smile when Cal, Ethan and Lily entered.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" he said, standing up and offering Lily his seat.

Lily just about managed not to glare at him. She remained standing.

"We'd really like to speak to you, Mac," said Ethan. "Please sit down. I can see you're tired. The thing is… well…"

A look of fear came into Mac's eyes, though he tried to hide it.

Ethan sat beside Mac. "I know you've had a really difficult time lately. Being on the scene but being unable to help when Noel was attacked – that must have been horrific. I'm really not sure how I'd have coped if I'd seen that happen to Cal. I honestly can't imagine anything more terrifying and some of us just aren't built for fighting."

Big Mac said nothing, but he hadn't tried to do a runner. Cal gave Ethan an encouraging smile.

"And then you hurt your back," said Ethan. "Pain is one of the most difficult things to deal with. You were worried about Noel; feeling guilty for something that wasn't your fault; and you were trying to recover from an injury. I think anyone would struggle to cope in that situation."

Big Mac lifted his head slightly. "Are you trying to say something to me?"

"Yes, I am," said Ethan. "I'm saying people find all sorts of ways of helping them to cope. There's one coping method that's particularly common for someone in your situation and if it's happened to you, Mac, it's not your fault."

"I just didn't know what to do!" burst out Big Mac. "I was in pain and Zoe said I couldn't have any more, then that relative was waving her box of tramadol all over the hospital…"

Ethan put his hand gently on Mac's arm. "It's okay. You shouldn't have stolen the tramadol and I'm not saying there won't be repercussions, but addiction is an illness, Mac. Illness can play with your mind and make you do things you wouldn't usually consider. I don't really want to talk about myself, but I'm ill too and it's been making me do all sorts of peculiar things. I've been drinking heavily and getting my female patients into cupboards."

Big Mac turned to stare at Ethan. " _You_ in cupboards with female patients?"

"Yes," said Ethan with an embarrassed smile. "Isn't that right, Cal?"

"Totally right," said Cal. "I know because he phoned and asked me what to do!"

Ethan went a bit red, but he nodded earnestly. "My illness made me do something very unprofessional - and so did yours. We can't change what we've done, Mac, but we can change what we do next time."

"I don't want to do it again," said Big Mac. "I went to Narcotics Anonymous. I'm trying to get over this."

Ethan looked genuinely impressed. "That's great, Mac. It really is. I'm supposed to be going to a support group soon and I'm scared to death. But I know you can beat this addiction and if there's ever anything I can do, all you need to do is let me know. I'll do anything I can."

"But I don't know if I can do it!" said Big Mac, his face crumpling.

Ethan put his arm around Mac. "Of course. It's so hard giving up something that's been so important to you. But I believe you can do it. It might take time. There will be ups and downs. But I'm sure you can do this, Mac, and you're not doing it alone."

"I'm here for you too," said Cal, feeling he ought to contribute something.

Lily nodded. "And me. I know I'm not the most sympathetic person, but I know what it's like when a distressing event alters your behaviour."

"But… there is one thing," said Cal.

Big Mac tensed up. His eyes strayed to the door. "I'm not telling anyone. I can't! I'll lose my job."

Ethan looked into Big Mac's eyes. "It is a possibility. I can't lie. But can you do your job as you are now? You must be so tired; so stressed; so afraid. I'm not trying to push you into anything, Mac, but I would like to ask you a question. Are you sure you want to live with these feelings forever? If you do lose your job, that doesn't mean you won't find another. I'm sure there are many people who would be willing to say what a good worker you are; how kind you are to the patients; how you've assisted with many emergency situations both in the hospital and outside it."

Big Mac said nothing.

"If you continue to live with these feelings, it will affect your job," continued Ethan. "It's affecting your job right now. You should be working, but you can't because you feel so bad. That's understandable. I've had times when I've struggled to work; there have definitely been times when I've needed to hide myself away because I just can't keep going. But that's not always enough. Some things stay with you, no matter how many moments you take to gather your strength. Sometimes the only way out is to face it and I know that might seem impossible. But at least it gives you a chance of coming out the other side."

"But I can't!" said Big Mac. "I can't tell anyone. But Charlie could lose his job… I don't want that."

"I know you don't," said Ethan sympathetically. "Charlie is an incredible nurse and an incredible human being."

"He doesn't deserve this."

"No, he doesn't," agreed Cal, a bit more sharply than he'd intended. "He's been like a dad to me. And he's pretty much sacrificed his whole career; his reputation for you. Don't you think you owe him the -"

"Caleb!" said Ethan. "I know Charlie is important to you – he's important to me too – but this isn't helping. And I'm sure you're saying nothing Mac hasn't said to himself a hundred times."

Big Mac looked at him helplessly. "I don't want to do this. Charlie's the best nurse I've ever worked with. And one of the best friends I've ever had. But I… I can't."

"I'd probably feel the same in your position, but you're stronger than you think you are," said Ethan. "You've managed to talk to us and I think you've talked to Charlie as well?"

Big Mac nodded. "And Noel."

"You might find everyone else is a lot more understanding than you're expecting," said Ethan; "There might be a disciplinary procedure, but there will also be help and support. You'll have me, Cal, Lily, Noel and Charlie on your side. I'm sure there will be others. We're all here for you, Mac."

"They forgave me for bullying Alicia," said Lily. "Mrs Beauchamp has forgiven Rita for telling the police she murdered someone. Rita has forgiven Mrs Beauchamp for blaming her for the fact Grace ran away from the hospital on the day a convicted paedophile was admitted. Lofty was forgiven – or perhaps 'understood' is a better term – when his actions caused the death of a temporary staff member. The ED is a forgiving, understanding workplace. I believe you will be forgiven and understood too."

Cal nodded. "Not forgetting that I stole my brother's inheritance and gave it to a con artist I was besotted with." He looked over at Ethan, almost overwhelmed with an emotion he was determined not to label in public. "And Ethan _forgave_ me. He helped me. He was there for me. If you've got Ethan on your side, you've got a hell of a chance of getting through this."

Ethan looked startled, then he smiled, his eyes slightly misty.

Cal decided not to comment on it. Now or ever. "So, what do you think, Mac?" he asked, knowing Ethan might need a moment to compose himself. "I know you might need a bit of time. I know I would. But what are you thinking?"

"You'd really be there for me?" asked Big Mac.

"Of course we will," said Ethan. "I promise."

Big Mac said nothing for a moment. He stared down at the floor. Cal couldn't read his expression.

Then he stood up. "I'm going to tell Rita. Then I'll tell Mrs Beauchamp." He spoke with an authoritativeness Cal had rarely, if ever, seen from him. "Maybe I can't get through this. I don't know. But I'm going to try."


	35. Chapter 35

_This is the final chapter - I hope it's not too rushed. I had a bit too much material for one chapter but not enough for two. Thank you for reading, following, favouriting and reviewing the story - it only took me nearly a year to write! I hope you've enjoyed it._

 **Bonnie Sveen Fan** , it is good Big Mac did the right thing. Of course, he would have done it even without Ethan's intervention, but I think it happened slightly sooner in this story and saved Big Mac, Charlie, Noel and various people a bit of stress, as well as (I hope) being a positive experience for Ethan. Thank you for your review.

 **InfinityAndOne** , thank you for your review. I think Ethan was a good person to help Big Mac and it might have worked well in the series too, though the producers obvious wanted Ethan's personality change to be a permanent thing. I agree Big Mac is brave - he can be a coward, but in a way that makes his courage more remarkable.

 **Tanith Panic** , it probably isn't a good idea to be confident of anything with one of my stories! But they escorted him to the door, so there's a good chance he'll do it. It might actually be less scary to tell Connie the truth than to think up a lie to explain why he's in her office! Thank you for your review.

* * *

Ethan was waiting in the car with a far from impressed look on his face.

Cal couldn't to stop smirking. "Jacob really is one lucky guy."

"Please spare me the details," said Ethan.

Cal thought about giving him the details anyway, just to torture him.

Then he thought if anyone had earned the right not to be tortured today, it was his little brother.

* * *

Cal had been half-expecting it, but it was still a shock when he glanced at Ethan in the middle of the football match they were watching and saw tears sliding down his brother's face. Cal had been enjoying the match, but he switched the TV off and gave Ethan a hug.

Ethan gave a sob and pressed closer to him. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be sorry," said Cal. "You've had a rough day. And it's not like I never cry."

Ethan sniffed. "I was just thinking about Big Mac."

Cal stroked his hair. "I know. It is sad what's happened to him. He's never been very strong. He couldn't cope with being a paramedic. He couldn't cope when he was short of money. He couldn't cope when Noel was attacked. He doesn't always make good decisions - and yes: I know I'm the last person who should be criticising him for that. But the thing is, despite all the other stuff, he's one of the good guys. That's why he confessed - and that's why everyone wants him to stay. And hopefully he will."

Ethan nodded. "I hope so too. And… I was thinking about me too," he said with a little hiccupping sob. "Big Mac and I… we're not that dissimilar."

Cal stared at him. "Ethan, you're not an addict or a thief!"

"No, but I do hide things," said Ethan. "I do everything I can to convince people that everything's okay when it really isn't. And it hurts, Cal. I don't want to do it anymore."

"What are you hiding?" asked Cal, confused.

"The Huntington's," said Ethan. "I've hardly told anyone. And I think everyone I work with has the right to know."

"Ethan-"

"They need to know they might not always be able to trust me," said Ethan.

"Ethan, listen-"

"But it's more than that," said Ethan with another sob. "I don't want to worry anyone, but I can't manage this alone and I don't want you to be supporting me alone. I want to tell Mrs Beauchamp at the very least." He lifted his head. "And then I want to go to this meeting."

* * *

Cal had seen Connie upset before. It always shocked him because it was so unexpected. She sat silently as Ethan haltingly told Connie that he had Huntington's Disease.

Cal had his arm around his brother and kept squeezing his good shoulder whenever he stammered, stopped talking or shed a tear.

"Thank you for telling me, Ethan," said Connie, when he'd finished speaking. "You did the right thing, but I know it can't have been easy. I'm very sorry."

Ethan wiped his eyes. "Mrs Beauchamp, I would like to continue working."

"I'm glad to hear it," said Connie. "There's nothing wrong with you physically and you're certainly very sharp mentally."

"Oh, um, thank you," said Ethan, still tearful but blushing now.

"You're clearly capable of many things," said Connie. "I know nothing will be the same as being a doctor, but there are many ways in which you can be an asset to the ED. You've shown that in the last few days. Not just with your intelligence in catching the thief, but in the empathy and compassion you've shown to Big Mac and Rita. You're a big part of the reason why we haven't lost two exceptional nurses - Rita and Charlie - and a kind, caring HCA. You're capable of great things, Dr Hardy. And I'm certainly not overlooking your contribution, Dr Knight, or Dr Chao's. I'm very impressed with all of you. But now, I'd like you to return to the career you've trained for and save a few lives."

"I-I was actually wondering if it might be possible for me to resit my FCEM," said Ethan.

"Excellent," said Connie. "I'll enter you for the next sitting. Not because there's any hurry – because you're capable and ready. I'd have strongly recommended that you were appointed as Dr Hanna's replacement if you hadn't been so unlucky the first time you took the exam."

Ethan stared at her in amazement. "Really?"

Connie sighed. "Surely you don't think I'd joke about something like that."

Ethan dropped his gaze.

"I'll see to it this morning," said Connie. "Dr Knight, would you like me to enter you too?"

Cal nodded. "Yes, please. I know I won't do as well as Ethan and he deserves to be a consultant before I do, but it is what I want. I want to be the best doctor I can be." _And the best carer I can be. One day._

Ethan smiled at him. "You'll pass this time, Cal. I'll help you. You deserve all the help I can give you, especially considering you'll be doing everything for me one day."

"Ethan, you've already paid me in full for that. When I think of all the rules I've broken since I got here and all the trouble-" Cal stopped and glanced at Connie.

"I wasn't listening," she said. "But perhaps you should continue this conversation outside." As Cal closed the door behind them, she spoke again. "Oh, and there's someone in the staff room who really wants to speak to you."

* * *

Cal tried not to feel nervous. After all, Charlie was his friend. His colleague. Almost a father. "You go in first. You're the one who did all the work."

"Caleb, that's not true at all. I couldn't have done anything without you."

"All I did was make things even more confused."

"You couldn't have made me more confused than I was already. You were wonderful, Cal, and I couldn't be more grateful. Now stop dawdling and open the door, please."

Cal opened the door. Charlie, who'd probably heard every word of their conversation, was standing just inside the staff room.

"Hey," said Cal awkwardly.

Charlie put his arms around both men. "Thank you," he said simply. "Both your mothers would be so proud."

* * *

Cal pushed open the door and felt Ethan shrinking closer to his side. There were a number of people in the room, all sitting in a circle. Some were in wheelchairs and had a carer constantly at their sides. Many were walking normally like Ethan.

"It's going to be okay," said Cal, giving Ethan's hand a quick squeeze. "I know it's scary. If it was me, I'd probably still be sitting in the car, making excuses not to go in. But you can do this, Ethan. I know you can."

Ethan smiled gratefully at his brother and squared his shoulders. "Shall we go in?"

Cal nodded. "Let's go in."

A man of about forty was walking towards him. His gait was mostly smooth, but there was a hint of awkwardness. "Hi, welcome to the Huntington's support group. I'm Michael."

Cal smiled. "Hey, I'm Cal and this is my brother Ethan."

"I have the gene," blurted Ethan.

"It's nice to meet you both." Michael moved his hand slowly and carefully into position as he shook hands with them both. "I'm one of the volunteers. I'm here with my brother Stephen. I have the gene too."

Cal and Ethan glanced at one another, momentarily speechless.

"Caleb and Ethan are the names our adoptive mother gave us," said Cal. "But our birth mother called us Stephen and Michael."

Michael looked surprised, then he smiled. "Then we've got something in common already. We all have the Huntington's gene in common, of course, but it's only a small part of who we are and it's not the only thing we talk about here. We're interested in each person as an individual and we support each other with everything – not just the parts of our lives that are affected by Huntington's. Why don't you come with me and I'll introduce you to my brother and April, who runs the group. I don't know about you – you actually look very calm - but I was petrified on my first day."

* * *

Stephen was quieter and more thoughtful than his brother – so more like Ethan than Cal –but he'd also been very welcoming. The brothers were both primary school teachers and the two sets of brothers had already swapped a few stories about the positives and negatives of working in the same place as your brother. Michael said he was starting to find it difficult to write on the whiteboard, so he now typed as much as he could up in advance and projected it onto the whiteboard. For now, he could still mark books, but Stephen was going to do the writing for him when he couldn't manage it himself. Cal knew Michael would have problems when the gene began to affect him mentally and emotionally too, but for now, he was enjoying his job despite his limitations.

Cal hoped the same would be true for Ethan.

"Okay: as you might have noticed, we have two new members: Cal and Ethan." April smiled at Cal and Ethan. "Would either of you like to say a few words, or would you rather just observe?"

Cal glanced at Ethan, ready to follow his lead – while he was more than happy to speak, he didn't want to reveal information about Ethan without his brother's agreement.

But Ethan was smiling and already answering April's question. "I don't want to bore you, but perhaps I could say a few words if that's all right."

"Of course," said April.

"M-my name… I'm sorry: I have a bit of a stutter when I'm nervous. My n-name is Ethan Hardy and this is my brother Caleb Knight."

"Call me Cal."

"We're both doctors in the Holby City Emergency Department," said Ethan. "A couple of months ago, we discovered we were adopted and that our birth mother had Huntington's. We got to know her and spent some time with her before she died. On the day we died, we found out I'd inherited the gene. I'm afraid I didn't cope very well at all. I made all sorts of mistakes. I But I found out recently that there's more to life than my job; that there are many other things I can do to help people. I know there will be days when I feel hopeless and depressed. Days where I'll give up. Days where everything seems pointless." He smiled at Cal. "But the other thing I know is that I won't ever have to face this alone."


End file.
